Spider-Man Rewrite
by Blaque Cell
Summary: I rewrite the classic tale of Spider-Man for a 2001 take on Spidey. In this tale, Peter gains his powers, learns of his responsibilities, and faces his first major villian, The Green Goblin!! For you Gwen Stacy fans out there, Gwen is the focus of Peter's


SPIDER-MAN

  
  
  
  
  
  


BY ADAM KING

  
  


Three minutes. That's how long it would take for the police to reach the bank after the silent alarm was activated. Plenty of time for someone to rob the bank. Especially if a group of people were robbing it. This was a carefully planned operation for the Jade Syndicate. The police would never be able to stop them in time. But what if their efforts were halted by somebody other than the police?

  
  


It was 9 P.M. The bank had just closed, so the only people inside were the manager, a few employees, and two guards. One guard was stationed at the vault. The other was standing a few feet away from the front door. The guard waved as the manager walked towards the door. "See you tomorrow, Mr. Williams."

  
  


"Good night, Phil. Be alert," said Mr. Williams, the manager.

  
  


Before the manager could reach the door, a tall man in black riot gear entered and pushed him back. The man quickly turned and shot the guard in the leg with a silenced pistol, then he grabbed the guard's gun and pointed it at the manager's chest. "Mr. Williams, I presume? I like your bank. It's nice and clean. Take me on a tour of it, won't you?" The man pushed Mr. Williams back a few feet while five more men entered the bank behind him, each of them carrying assault rifles. "Now, listen to me very carefully. You will tell your employees to be calm and to cooperate with us. If they do anything we don't like, we will kill your security guard over there. Then, we will kill you. Understood?" The manager nodded slowly. "Good. Now let's go."

  
  


The two men walked into another room where four employees were preparing to leave. "Everybody, remain calm," said Mr. Williams. The employees all turned to him and saw all six masked men behind him. "Do as they say. Just stay calm and you'll all be safe."

  
  


"You people should listen to your boss," said one man. "Now, everybody on the floor!" Everybody reluctantly complied and dropped to the floor. One man walked toward a woman and lifted her up. "I don't think you guys are taking us seriously. Maybe we should set an example." The man placed his rifle at the woman's temple while she begged and pleaded for her life. He squeezed the trigger slightly, and before he knew it, his weapon was gone. He looked up and saw his rifle dangling from what seemed to be a rope. And above that was somebody who was holding the weapon.

  
  


"What have I told you? If you can't play nice, then I'm taking your toys!" The mysterious man held the rifle and snapped it in two. He was perched on the ceiling, his body upside-down, and he held each half of the rifle in both hands. He released the ceiling, performed a somersault, and landed in front of the stunned gunman. "You look a little ill. I guess terrorists don't eat very healthy, do they? You need more fiber." The man dropped both pieces of the rifle and turned to the gunman, who was scared out of his wits.

The gunman reached for a revolver on the holster around his waist, but before he could reach it, the man fired something from his wrist and pinned his arms to his sides. "Thank God for webbing. Every glue company in the world will want this stuff!"

  
  


"What... what the hell are you?" asked the gunman.

  
  


"Not what, numbskull, but who. I'm nobody special. Just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man." Spider-Man glanced over his shoulder at the other terrorists, who were stunned and temporarily unable to act. "Man, tough crowd." He turned back to the man that he had bound with webbing. "Excuse me for a moment." Spider-Man jumped and pulled his legs back, then with both feet he kicked the man in the chest and propelled himself backward. He performed a backflip and gracefully landed amid all of the terrorists. "Come on guys! We're gonna play Monkey in the Middle! Or maybe it's spider... I'm not sure..." One man regained his instincts and aimed at Spider-Man, but in a split second, his gun was knocked out of his hand. Spider-Man grabbed the man, jumped toward the ceiling, and slammed him into it. Once he was back on the ceiling, he fired two more web strands and pinned two men to the ground. Then he bounced from the ceiling, kicked a man in the back, rebounded toward another man, and punched him in the face while still in midair. Finally, he landed on one hand, flipped to his feet, and stood over the pile of unconscious men. "I have the feeling that was supposed to be a withdrawal and not a deposit."

  
  


The manager slowly walked toward Spider-Man. Before he could say anything, Spider-Man turned to him, which scared him a little bit. "Sir, thank you! You saved our lives, as well as my bank! How could I possibly repay you?"

  
  


"A harem of beautiful women would be nice. Seriously though, just be a law abiding citizen and my life will be easier." Spider-Man jumped to a wall and clung to it. "The cops are on their way. If you want to help me out, tell them that I'm one of the good guys."

  
  


"Yes, of course! Thank you so much!"

  
  


Just then, another guard walked into the room. "Sir, what happened? I heard some commotion and..." The man stopped speaking when he saw another man in a red and blue costume crouched on the wall. He stammered for a little while until the other man waved to him, and all he could do was wave back. He watched the man climb out of the window and, after a few seconds, he fainted.

  
  


Spider-Man fired a web line at another building and started to swing from it. He skillfully moved from building to building, continuously moving until he reached his new "hang-out", the Empire State Building. He fired one last web line and used it to swing toward the building, then he released it and allowed himself to float toward the building and cling to its side. After making himself comfortable, he stared down at hundreds of people moving around. "It's been one month and people still don't know me! Of course, this is only my second adventure. The last time I went out as Spider-Man was... when I took on the murderer that..." Spider-Man stopped himself from finishing the sentence. He closed his eyes and relived the event that changed his life forever.

One month earlier, Peter Parker was your average high school senior. He was an excellent student, too. He received good grades, his teachers liked him, and he loved science more than anything. Of course, his life wasn't easy. He had his share of tormentors. The worst one was Flash Thompson, part time jock, full time tormentor of Peter, or "Puny Parker", as he liked to call him. Flash was by far the most popular guy in school. He was on the wrestling and football team, and all the girls liked him. Then, there was Peter, a mere five feet, six inches of nerd. He only weighed 112 pounds, so he couldn't dream of doing any of the activities that Flash did. Although a few girls were interested in him, Peter was entirely too shy to say anything to them, so he kept to himself. He devoted himself to his studies, and he was certain that his life would be better if he just kept his grades up.

  
  


This was the day Peter was waiting for. This was the day of Professor Stillwell's neogenics exhibit. This was the biggest bit of news the scientific community had heard in a long time. Even Norman Osborne, president of Osborne Chemicals, was going to attend. Peter couldn't wait for the school day to be done so he could go. He arose from the bed and began his daily routine: shower, iron, get dressed, eat breakfast. After pulling his red and blue sweater over his shirt, he ran down the steps to the living room, where he saw his Uncle Ben sitting on the couch and watching the news. "Good morning, Uncle Ben!" said Peter.

  
  


"Peter, my boy! Good morning!" Ben Parker rose from the couch and hugged his nephew. "Hey, isn't that whatchamacallit exhibit today? Neonoodle or some nonsense?" Peter chuckled and hooked his arm around his uncle's shoulder.

  
  


"It's 'neogenic'. This is some pretty important stuff. They'll be talking about manipulating DNA and the effects of radioactivity on one's cell structure. It's absolutely fascinating! Just think of what mankind could achieve if we were to master something like that! Like genetic mutations or something!"

  
  


"Personally, I don't want to be a mutant. I might grow claws, like that X-guy."

  
  


"So, I guess you're not coming, huh?"

  
  


"Sorry, my boy, but none of it makes any sense to me. Just make sure you're not home too late."

  
  


"Okay. See you later, Uncle Ben." Peter glanced at the TV momentarily before leaving. There was a story about a masked burglar who was robbing homes in the Queens area of New York. "Wow, that's close to our house." Peter turned toward the kitchen after that and entered it. Once he arrived, he was greeted by his Aunt May.

  
  


"Good morning, dear! Are you ready for school?" asked Aunt May.

  
  


"Yes ma'am. Oh, you know I'll be home late tonight, right?" asked Peter.

  
  


"Yes, of course. I'm so glad you've developed an interest in this. Your parents would be so proud of you, God bless they're souls."

After eating breakfast, Peter rushed to school. He arrived in his advisory room ten minutes early, like usual. He sat down in his seat and looked at the clock: 8:10. Great, only eight hours and fifty minutes to wait. Peter decided to pass time by studying. He opened one of his biology books and started reading. After a few minutes, the other students entered the class. Peter glanced up to acknowledge them, then he saw the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He had forgotten all about the book, and he stared so hard he could have burned holes through his glasses. He had no idea that somebody was calling his name.

  
  


"Pete? Earth to Peter? Hello?"

  
  


Peter's trance wore off, and he looked to the left. In the seat next to him was his best friend, Harry Osborne, son of Norman Osborne. "Oh, uh, hi Harry."

  
  


"You okay, Pete?" asked Harry.

  
  


"Who, me? Yeah! I'm fine! But..um... who is that?" Peter pointed to the girl he had just been admiring.

  
  


"Oh, her? That's Gwen Stacy. She's new here. Just came yesterday. You didn't notice?"

  
  


"Well...no."

  
  


"You see, Pete? Keep your nose in those books and you'll never know what's going on in the world! You like her, don't you?"

  
  


"What? I never said that! I was just...curious."

  
  


"Sure you were. Look, she's cool. Go talk to her."

  
  


"What? But, we don't even know each other!"

  
  


"I didn't say flirt! Just talk to her. Introduce yourself. She might like you."

  
  


"No way, Harry. You know how shy I am."

  
  


"Look, if it makes you feel any better, I'll go up there with you, okay?"

  
  


"Well...fine. Let's go." Harry walked to the opposite side of the room with Peter trailing behind him. When they reached Gwen's desk, Peter got the urge to run. But, amazingly, he stood perfectly still. He listened to Gwen and Harry talk for awhile, then he jumped when he heard Harry say his name. He was happy, though, because Harry was saying good things. Nice guy, fun to hang with, stuff like that. Then he heard somebody say, "Complete and utter dork". Peter looked back and saw the one person he hoped would never show up: Flash Thompson.

  
  
  
  


"Hey Gwen. Harry. Puny." Flash walked forward and effortlessly pushed Peter out of the way. He sat on a desk next to Gwen and smiled. "What are you talking to Puny Parker for? You know you could have a real man, like me."

  
  


"I don't know, Flash. I don't usually date guys who consider jerking off a way to pass the time," said Gwen. Harry tried to stop himself from laughing so he could help Peter up while Flash walked away.

  
  


"You alright, Pete?" asked Harry. 

  
  


"Yeah, I guess so. Where did Flash go?" asked Peter.

  
  


"I think Gwen hurt his feelings."

  
  


"Oh, poor him," said Gwen. "You're Peter Parker, right? Harry says you're a nice guy."

  
  


Thank God for Harry. If he weren't there, things would have gotten really embarrassing. Peter dusted himself off and turned to Gwen. "Um... yes, I'm Peter Piper..uh... Parker. It's a p...p...p... pleasure to meet you."

  
  


"I'll let you two get acquainted. See you guys later." Harry walked away and, once he was a few feet away, burst with laughter.

  
  


"So, um, what brings you here?" asked Peter.

  
  


"Well, my dad is a cop, and he used to work in Manhattan, but he was transferred to Queens. So, here I am."

  
  


"Oh, I see." Peter was happy. So far, everything was going nicely. It was going to be a good day. Or, at least, it seemed like it would be a good day. The rest of the day was pretty normal. He even sat with Gwen at lunch. After school, Peter gathered his books and prepared to walk a few blocks so he could see the exhibit. As he walked out of the school, he saw Gwen talking with a few other girls. "Hey Gwen, are you busy?"

  
  


Gwen turned to him and smiled. "Not at all, Peter. What's up?"

  
  


"Well, I was going to attend an exhibit on neogenics today. It's really quite fascinating. Would you like to come with me?"

  
  


"Well, Peter, I think that's nice, but I have no idea what a neogenic is. Besides, I have to get home. See you tomorrow, okay?"

  
  


"Um... okay then. Bye." Peter swore he could hear laughter behind him. He turned around and saw Flash laughing like a hyena. He didn't even want to tolerate Flash's taunts, so he just walked away and prepared for the exhibit.

The exhibit was packed. There were important people everywhere. Scientists, businessmen and women, high school and college students, and most important of all, Norman Osborne. Peter took a seat and waited for the show to begin.

  
  


"Excuse me. Aren't you Harry's friend?"

  
  


Peter looked up from a book he was reading and became stunned. He was looking at Norman Osborne himself, who was quite possibly the richest man in the state of New York. He stood up and shook Osborne's hand. "Yes sir, I'm Harry's friend, Peter Parker."

  
  


"It's a pleasure, Peter." Osborne turned to some colleagues that were behind him. "Now, this young man is our future! This young man could be the next Bill Gates! Or, to a lesser extent, the next... well... whoever made Apple computers!" Peter laughed with the colleagues. Then he began to wonder: What if Osborne was right? Maybe Peter could be somebody famous someday. It wasn't very likely, but it wasn't impossible either. After Peter met a few of Osborne's friends, the show began.

  
  


When Professor Stillwell made his presentation, Peter was hooked on his every word. Stillwell was showing off numerous inventions to the crowd. There was one invention in particular that caught Peter's eye. It had absolutely nothing to do with DNA, but it was still there. It was given the name Wing Bomber. Stillwell said it would be used for military purposes, but there was only one working unit. The one Peter saw was just a model. The Wing Bomber was a small glider that was shaped like a bat. It had flying capabilities, and there were two machine gun turrets on it. Peter stared at it for awhile, then he went back to his seat to watch the rest of the presentation.

  
  


"And now, ladies and gentleman, my newest invention and crowning achievement. This is the future of combat!" Professor Stillwell help up a small cylinder that contained a green liquid. "Many of you may remember the Super Soldier serum that was used during World War 2 on our nation's greatest champion: Captain America. This serum would enhance a person's physical prowess. Well now, the serum has been improved upon. This new serum, which I have dubbed the Stillwell, has an even greater effect than the Super Soldier serum. It will increase physical strength, speed, and endurance tenfold!"

  
  


Peter listened to the rest of the speech and became completely fascinated. He had no idea that there were activities going on above him. A small spider went about its business, spinning a web above all the machinery in the room. As it moved around, it came close to one machine which was generating electricity. This machine was another invention of Stillwell's. It was designed to transform radioactivity into heat energy, which would allow it to fire laser beams with half the strength of a nuclear missile. The product was not finished though, so the danger involved was not as great. The spider continued to spin the web. Soon it came within the field of the electricity. Its body was shocked at first, then it was racked with pain. The spider's body turned a bright red color, and its hairs began to shed. The radiation built in its body and then converted to heat energy. The spider was still caught in the electric current, and it caused sparks to fly around above the spectators.

Peter looked up. The ceiling was hidden by bright lights and sparks. He jumped to the side as a piece of flaming debris fell from the ceiling. All around him, there was chaos. People were running and dodging flaming wreckage that fell toward them. Machines exploded all around. Another machine directly behind Peter exploded and propelled him to a nearby wall. Peter tried to stand up, but he was in too much pain. His body went limp, and all he could do was watch. He saw another machine explode only two feet away from Norman Osborne. The blast knocked Osborne several feet away. He landed in front of the podium that Stillwell was speaking at. Laying next to him was the Stillwell, the strength serum that was just introduced.

  
  


Osborne was convinced that he was dying. He felt a pain that he had never felt before, and his whole body felt numb. Could this strength serum cure me? he wondered. Osborne did not want to die, and he thought that becoming stronger could benefit him if it saved him. He gathered all of his strength and reached for the cylinder, then he put it to his lips and drank the liquid inside. Then, his body became limp. His eyes bulged and his veins became visible. His muscles bulged and convulsed. He felt a new strength in his body. With no effort, he stood up. Osborne stared at his arms and began to laugh. Without saying a thing, he walked through the flames and out the front door.

  
  


Peter, on the other hand, was not doing so well. He couldn't figure out what happened to Osborne. In fact, he was in too much pain to think about it. All he could think about were Aunt May and Uncle Ben. He didn't want to die yet. He didn't want to cause them grief. Peter tried to stand up, but he was still in pain. Every move brought more pain, and it became so unbearable that he lost the will to go on. His body fell to the floor for the last time and went numb again. All of a sudden, Peter could see only one thing: a spider. The spider fell from the sky and landed on Peter's hand. Its body had become so red that it irritated Peter's eyes to look at it, but he stared at it anyway. Without warning, the frightened spider sank its fangs into Peter's hand. The bite had hurt more than a spider bite should have, and Peter didn't know why. He didn't even know why the spider bit him, but it didn't matter now. Just another pain in a world of disaster and agony. The pain in Peter's hand hurt even more than before. As he looked in the direction of the thing that caused the pain, he realized that the spider died right after it bit him. And now he was ready to join it.

  
  


Peter woke up hours later in the hospital. His eyes slowly came into focus, and he started to recognize those around him. There was Uncle Ben, Aunt May, Harry and Norman Osborne, and, most surprising of all: Gwen Stacy. Peter smiled at everybody and closed his eyes again.

  
  


"Oh, I'm so glad you're alive, Peter!" said Aunt May.

  
  


"How are you, son?" asked Ben.

  
  


"I've been better," said Peter.

  
  


"I'm glad to see you're okay. Told you to stay away from that exhibit!" said Harry.

  
  


"It seems we were both lucky, my boy," said Norman.

Peter was shocked. Norman Osborne was there. He hadn't even realized it at first. Norman got up and walked out of that inferno without a scratch on him. And here he was, perfectly fine. Peter decided not to say anything, though. There were too many questions to be asked. "Thanks for coming, everyone. Now, if you don't mind, I need to get some rest." 

  
  


"Of course, Peter. We'll be very close, dear," said May.

  
  


Everybody except Gwen said their goodbyes and left the room. When they were all gone, Gwen sat next the bed. Peter didn't know she was still there until he heard her crying. Why is she crying? he wondered. We only met today. Could she feel that strongly about me? Peter closed his eyes and pretended to sleep. After about a minute, he heard her stand up. Then she did something he couldn't believe. He felt her lips on his cheek and he nearly opened his eyes. She stood up and left the room after that, and Peter was all alone.

  
  


From then on, Peter's life became very strange. He was entirely healed by the next evening. There was no pain in his entire body. Two days later, Peter returned to school. The students and the teachers struggled to figure out how he could be fine already. Besides, four people died in that accident, and six more were hospitalized, but Peter and Norman were okay. When people asked him how he healed so quickly, Peter told them it was luck.

  
  


After school that day, Peter began walking home. Suddenly, he felt a strange sensation in his head. He didn't know why, but he had an urge to look behind him. He turned around and saw a car. Apparently, the driver lost control of his car and skid onto the sidewalk. Without even having thought about it, Peter backflipped off of the ground and found himself on the side of a building. It actually took him a few seconds to figure out what had just happened. He screamed out loud once he realized he was actually clinging to the side of a building. Peter didn't know what to do, so he just followed his instincts and climbed. It only took him two seconds to scale the wall and pull himself onto the roof. Once he was on top, he struggled to catch his breath.

  
  


"What the hell is happening to me? I must be hallucinating!" Peter looked around and tried to piece together what was happening, but he couldn't. All he knew was that he was on top of a huge building, and moments earlier he was able to jump ten feet in the air and cling to a wall, and then climb it. "Why is this happening?" Peter became so frustrated that he just had to hit something. He dropped to his knees and pounded the roof of the building, and then he stared at it. Well, actually he was staring through it, because Peter's fists punched a huge hole in the roof. Peter backed away from the hole and sat down. Then, he smiled. "Okay, so I can climb walls, jump really high, and I'm obviously stronger than I used to be. So what does a seventeen year old former geek do with powers like these?" Peter started to think about the possibilities of what he could do. He stood up and stood in a pose with his chest out.

  
  


"I could be... a superhero!" The words didn't seem to make sense to him.

  
  


"Aw, nuts to that! I'm gonna be rich!" That sounded better.

  
  
  
  


After about ten minutes, Peter arrived home. He would have been home sooner, but he found himself playing around in an alley, bouncing around on walls and climbing them until he became used to it. When he entered the house, he ran straight upstairs and locked the door. Then he sat down at his desk and placed pencils, markers, and paper on it. Then, he just started drawing. He figured that using these new-found abilities for money would mean that his true identity would have to be a secret, so he started designing some costumes. Peter considered his powers to be very spider-like, so he wanted to go with a spider theme. One design was mostly black, except for two huge white eyes, and two large white spider emblems: one on the front and one on the back. That one didn't work.

  
  


The next one was fairly simple: a red body suit, two white eyes, a brown belt, and a blue sleeveless sweater with a black spider emblem. Peter held the picture up and examined it. "I don't know. It's kinda...ghetto. But I like the red and blue theme. Maybe I'll stick with it."

  
  


The last design was Peter's favorite. The mask was red and it still had the huge white eyes, but it also contained a design that was similar to a spider's web. The web design continued down the neck of the costume and across the top of the back. On the front of the costume, the web design went down the midsection, then it split into two directions at the waist and formed what looked like a belt. It also ran up both of the arms of the costume, around the wrists, and over the hands. Although part of the arms were red with web designs, half of each arm was blue with no design, and this continued down the sides of the costume. The legs were also blue, except for the boots, which were also red with the web design. There were only two parts left to it: a small black spider emblem on the chest, and a large red spider emblem on the back, which stood out against the blue that ran down the back until it reached the red belt. The costume was complete. 

  
  


Then a new idea dawned on Peter. What if he could make webs, just like a spider? He stood up, held out one hand, and strained. To his disappointment, he couldn't shoot any webs. But he was determined to come up with a way to do it. An artificial web would need to be sticky and firm, yet flexible and durable. Maybe some chemicals could provide the solution?

  
  


Peter crawled out of the window and up to the top of his house. Then, after looking around for awhile, he hopped from roof to roof. After he ran out of houses to jump on, he jumped to a lamppost, grabbed it, swung around on it, and tossed himself into the air. Then he let himself freefall until he landed on top of his school. He cautiously crawled down the side of the school until he reached the window that led into the chemistry lab. Then, after peeking in, he came in through the window and dropped to the floor. Peter picked up a pair of gloves that were lying on a table and put them on, then he walked to a door that contained supplies for the lab. He grabbed the knob and effortlessly broke it off, then he allowed himself into the lab.

  
  


It only took Peter ten minutes to find the necessary chemicals needed for his experiments and mix them. Once he made a mixture of the chemicals, he took a small sample and placed it on a slide. When he tried to pull the sample off, the slide came with it. Then, Peter grabbed the strange substance and twisted it into weird shapes and contortions. So far, so good. Now, he needed to find a way to apply it to targets.

  
  


Peter searched the lab for one specific item. After a minute, he found it. It was a small device that contained compressed air. Once a button on it was activated, it would release the air at high speeds. Peter took two of these with him, and then he grabbed his formula and climbed back out to the roof. Once he was on top, he tore off a piece of his shirt and used it to tie the device to his wrist. Then, he poured his web formula into it. With two fingers, he pressed the button, and he saw a white silky substance fly out of it. He turned to the side and saw a lamppost. He aimed at it, fired, and jumped from the roof. At the last second he feared for his life and thought he would fall to his death, but he found himself swinging to another building instead. He slammed into the building with a thud, and then crawled to the top.

  
  


Once on the roof, Peter stared down at the street below him. He was actually able to live above all of the common people. This was his new domain. Peter Parker's life was about to change. Of course, his web-slinging needed a lot of practice, but that would be taken care of. There was only one more item on his "to do" list: he needed to actually get his dream costume.

  
  


Peter descended to the street and walked a few blocks to a shop where a seamstress worked. He looked over all of the available materials there. There was silk, cotton, leather. He purchased lots of cotton, a little bit of silk, and two straps of leather. After he had his items, he ran home to finish his master plan.

  
  


Immediately after getting home, Peter ran to his room and locked the door again. He searched through his closet and found a needle and some thread, which he planned to add to the materials he already brought. Then he sat down and started sewing. "Thank God Aunt May taught me how to sew. And I thought it would never come in handy!"

  
  


One hour later, Peter stood up to stretch. He looked down at the two leather straps and picked them up. Then, he grabbed the needle and pulled some thread through the straps so that they were in a position to slip over his wrists. Then he took his devices, which he called his "Web-Shooters", and used the silk to tie them to the leather straps. He slipped the web-shooters onto his wrists and then grabbed his costume.

  
  


Five minutes later, Peter was on the roof. It was dark now, about 7 o'clock. The moonlight was shining brightly on his face. He stood very still. Now, he had one thing to think about: what would he call himself? He thought about the possible titles. Arachnophobia? No way. Spider-Boy? Too corny. Bug Boy? Too stupid. Scarlet Spider? Ridiculous. Then a name came to him. The name was so obvious that he couldn't believe he didn't think about it before. Peter pulled his mask into place and stepped to the edge of the roof. Now, he knew who the world would know him as.

  
  


"Spider-Man!"

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


The next day was great for Peter. It was Saturday morning, so he didn't have to worry about school. This was the day Spider-Man was going to make him rich. Peter was planning to show his new skills in costume to some talent agent and make more money then he would know what to do with.

  
  


Peter ran down to the kitchen, where May and Ben were chatting and drinking coffee. He quickly ate his breakfast without saying a thing, then he crossed the table to May and kissed her on the cheek. "Bye Aunt May. I'm going to a job interview today."

  
  


"An interview? Why, I had no idea. What kind of job is it?" asked May.

  
  


"Well, um...it's kinda like a...well..." Peter had no idea what he could tell his aunt.

  
  


"Don't pressure the boy, May. I'm sure Peter's capable of finding a good job on his own," said Ben.

  
  


"Well, maybe. Unless...Peter, are you selling drugs?" asked May.

  
  


"No way! Aunt May, you have to trust me! I'm doing this so I can help with the bills," replied Peter.

  
  


"Well, good luck, Peter. Knock 'em dead!" said Ben.

  
  


Peter walked out of the front door, and, after looking around, climbed to his window, crawled in, and put on his costume. Then, as Spider-Man, he climbed back out, fired a web line at a tree, and used it to swing to the top of a bus. He made himself comfortable and waited until he reached his destination.

  
  


The bus arrived in Manhattan, which was already full of merchants, lawyers, and policeman, and it was only 10 A.M. Spider-Man jumped off of the bus and swung to a building across the street, then he climbed in to it through a window. He crawled around on the ceiling for a little while and eventually parked himself in a dark corner. Five minutes later, a man walked into the room with a security guard at his side. Spider-Man waited for them to walk into the center of the room. After they walked in and closed the door behind them, Spider-Man climbed to the center of the ceiling and dropped behind them. "Excuse me for dropping in, guys. I thought this was a public party."

  
  


The two men turned around and saw a man in a red and blue costume standing behind them. The guard reached for his gun, but before he could draw it, he saw Spider-Man jump, flip, and land right behind him. Before he knew it, a glob of web stuck him to the door. Spider-Man turned back to the man he came to see, who was backing away and whispering prayers to himself. "Please, don't kill me," said the man, "If you want money, I have plenty of it. Just don't kill me!"

  
  


"Don't worry, Maxie! I'm not going to hurt you. In fact, I'm your dream come true!"

"You may not know me, but I know all about you. You're Max "Million Dollar" Micheals, the biggest talent agent Manhattan has ever seen," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"Yes, but who are you?" asked Max.

  
  


"I'm the man that's going to make all your dreams come true. You've been looking for new talent lately, right?"

  
  


"Well, yeah but..."

  
  


"BUT...you haven't been able to find a fresh act. Nothing but comedians and dumb pet tricks."

  
  


"So, what's your act?"

  
  


"Just ask you guard over there." Spider-Man pointed to the guard, who was still stuck to the wall.

  
  


"So you can shoot some goo from your hands? Big deal."

  
  


"That's not all, Maxie. Watch this." Spider-Man stepped back, squatted, and vaulted to the ceiling. After he was on it, he crawled around and performed a bunch of stunts and aerobics. Max was so stunned that the cigar he was smoking fell out of his mouth. Before it could hit the floor, a web line caught it and pulled it toward the ceiling. "This stuff is bad for your health, Max." With one movement, Spider-Man flipped from the ceiling and tossed the cigar out of the window. "So, what do you think, Max? Interested in some new talent?"

  
  


"Um...well...you...you got a deal! Welcome aboard!"

  
  


"That's the greatest decision you've ever made, Maxie! So, when's my first job?"

  
  


"Well, if I can pull some strings, you could be working as early as next week."

  
  


"Beautiful! Well, Maxie, I'll be in touch. Oh yeah, and I'll be accepting cash, thank you."

  
  


"Not a problem. A big star deserves to be paid up front."

  
  


"Exactly. One more thing: my webbing will dissolve in an hour. Your guard will be free by then."

  
  


"Hey wait! What's your name?"

  
  


"...Call me 'Spider-Man'."

  
  
  
  
  
  


Spider-Man seemed to make Peter Parker's life easier. In the next few weeks, Spider-Man was appearing on variety shows, talk shows, and talent searches. Things were going so well that he not only gained a nickname (The Amazing Spider-Man), but there were even negotiations to give him his own show. Peter's love life was easier, too. He seemed to grow more confident, and one day he actually asked Gwen out. Things really seemed strange to Peter when she said yes.

  
  


On this particular day, Peter was planning to go to dinner with Gwen. Spider-Man just had one performance to make, and then Peter could go on his dream date. That night, Spider-Man made a bunch of stunts with acrobatics and even more web tricks on the show. The crowd loved every minute of the show. After his last act (he jumped from a thirty foot platform, executed a triple somersault, twirled his body in a 720 degree circle, and finally swung over the crowd's heads and back to the stage), Spider-Man bowed in front of the audience. This was what he dreamed of. A sense of belonging. After the show, he relaxed in his dressing room, chatting with a few other performers and Max. After he talked with them for a little while, he said his goodbyes to his new friends and left the room. Max caught up with him in the hallway.

  
  


"Hey, Spidey, what's the rush?" asked Max.

  
  


"Sorry, but I have things to do. See you next week?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"Of course. I'll see you then."

  
  


Spider-Man started to walk down the hall, but he stopped when he felt that weird buzzing in his head again. He turned around and saw a man in dirty clothes running past him. The man had uncombed black hair and a dirty jacket that he was concealing something under. Behind him was a security guard, who was chasing him. "Stop! Come back here, you thief!" Apparently, this man had done something wrong. Spider-Man considered stopping him. After all, one flick of the wrist and he would be held in place with webbing. But what was the point? The man glanced at Spider-Man for a moment before running out of a door and into the night. Spider-Man watched him go and shrugged. The guard ran up to him. "Why didn't you help me? You could have stopped him!"

  
  


"Hey, it's not my problem! What was the point?" answered Spider-Man. He turned toward the door and left the building.

  
  


The date was excellent. Thanks to the money he made as Spider-Man, he was able to take Gwen to a nice restaurant. They spent the evening chatting and eating, which disappointed Peter, but he was still glad to be there. After dinner, Peter walked Gwen to her house. They stood in the doorway talking for a few minutes. Then, all of a sudden, Gwen kissed Peter. He didn't see it coming, though. But, like all good things, it seemed shorter than it actually was. Gwen and Peter stood smiling, and there was an awkward silence until Gwen kissed Peter once more on the cheek. "Call me tomorrow, okay?"

  
  


"Yeah, sure," answered Peter.

  
  


Peter walked home very slowly after that. He was still stunned by what had just happened. Could this mean a possible relationship? Wouldn't Flash be jealous! Peter was so happy that he barely noticed the group of police cars a block ahead of him. It wasn't until he came closer to them that he realized the cars were parked in front of his house. Suddenly, his heart began to race. The weird buzzing in his head returned and flared like a siren. He ran as fast as he could, past the police tape and into the house. When he came inside, he saw Aunt May sitting on the couch and crying. There were two police officers in there with her.

  
  


"Aunt May, what happened? Are you alright?" asked Peter.

  
  


"Peter! Thank God you weren't here when it happened!" exclaimed May.

  
  


"When what happened?" Then Peter thought about it. "Where's Uncle Ben?"

  
  


May was too upset to speak. She was still crying hysterically. Peter knelt at her side as an officer approached him. "I'm afraid I have some bad news, son. While you were gone, a man burglarized your home. Then, your uncle tried to fight him off."

  
  


"Get to the point! Where's my uncle?" asked Peter.

  
  


"Son, your uncle is dead."

  
  


"What?" Peter wasn't sure he heard the words come out of the policeman's mouth. He needed to be assured, because he refused to believe that the man who raised him since he was a toddler could really be gone. Peter looked at his Aunt May with tear-filled eyes. "Uncle Ben...is dead?" May slowly nodded and then burst into another round of crying. Peter didn't know what to think after that. He wanted to comfort his aunt, but who would comfort him? At the very least, he wanted to know if the man responsible had been brought to justice. He stood and turned to the officer. "Have you arrested him yet?"

  
  


"We haven't been able to apprehend him yet. Some of our guys have him trapped in an abandoned building."

  
  


"What building? Where is it?"

  
  


"He's in the old Acme Warehouse down on 5th Street. There's a big standoff there."

  
  


Peter didn't want to hear anymore. He quickly ran up to his room and found his costume. Then, he climbed to the roof. Fat drops of rain beat down on him, and thunder boomed in the distance. He let the rain clean away his tears for a second, and then he began to put on the costume. "I know the old Acme Warehouse! It's been deserted for years! A killer could hold off an army in that gloomy old place!" Peter finally pulled the mask over his head and swung from the roof.

  
  


"But he won't hold off Spider-Man!"

Spider-Man jumped between trees and buildings while occasionally firing web lines between targets and swinging. Eventually, he arrived at the Acme Warehouse. He dropped to a building across the street from the warehouse and observed the scene below him. There were police officers all around the building. No normal person could possibly get through them and enter. But Spider-Man was no normal person. He spotted a window and swung above it. Then, he smashed the glass and climbed in. Once inside, he climbed the stairs to the top floor. He ran to a room at the top of the steps and saw a man crouched in front of the window with a pistol in his hand. The man noticed him and aimed the pistol at him. "Stay back! I'll kill you! Believe me, I'll do it!"

  
  


"I know you would take a life. I know that life means nothing to you. I believe you," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"Stay away from me! I killed once before! I can do it again!"

  
  


"Are you proud of that? Are you proud that you took a life?"

  
  


"Don't mean a thing to me, man! I'll kill you too!" The man fired a bullet toward Spider-Man. The buzzing in his head flared again, and Spider-Man quickly moved to the side and dodged the bullet.

  
  


"You won't be killing anyone else tonight. Because I'm going to kill you!" said Spider-Man. The man aimed the gun at him again, but his weapon was pulled out of his hand by a web. Spider-Man pulled the gun toward him and caught it, then he aimed it at the man. "Now, are you afraid? I bet that's exactly how Ben Parker felt the moment you killed him!" With one hand, Spider-Man crushed the pistol and dropped it. "No guns. I'm going to savor this moment."

  
  


"Why are you so pissed, anyway? Why do you care about some dead old man?"

  
  


"I'll tell you why! That 'dead old man' was someone close to me!" Spider-Man removed his mask and stepped into the light. "That 'dead old man' was my uncle!"

  
  


The burglar looked for a way to escape, but there wasn't one. There was no other choice but to get past Spider-Man. The man tried to push past him, but Spider-Man caught him by the arm and tossed him to the far wall. The man slowly stood up, ran forward, and hit Spider-Man with all of his strength. Despite all the force he had put into that punch, he didn't do a bit of damage. Spider-Man stood still just so he could let the burglar know that there was no way to win. Then, with lightning fast speed, he sent the man flying back to the wall with a cross to the jaw. The man slammed into the wall, and before he knew it, he saw Spider-Man on the ceiling above him. Spider-Man dropped from the ceiling and kicked the man, then he repeatedly punched him. If he had used all of his strength, he would have killed the man, but he was holding back on purpose. He wanted the beating to last forever. After about twenty punches, Spider-Man held his fist in the air. Was this really necessary? Killing the man wouldn't bring Uncle Ben back, but on the other hand, he was responsible for Uncle Ben's death. This was the hardest decision Peter ever had to make. He stood trembling, and then, he made his decision.

Spider-Man pressed two of his fingers to his palm and fired a web down on the burglar. "I'm not going to stoop to your level. I'm going to let you rot away in prison for the rest of your miserable little life. You can spend every moment doing one of two things. One: feel sorry for what you did to Ben Parker. Two: watch out for every convict who's gonna want a piece of you. Oh yeah, and don't drop the soap." Spider-Man reached down and grabbed the burglar's ski mask. After a moment of hesitation he pulled it off of his head and became shocked. He stared at the man's face and tried to convince himself that it wasn't true. This was the same man from the studio. The man that got away from the guard because Spider-Man didn't act when he could have. If he had stopped the man when the guard asked for help, this never would have happened. Spider-Man was stricken with too much grief to stay there. He walked back to where his mask lay, put it on, and walked toward the door. Then he felt the buzzing in his head. He saw the man stand up with his arms still webbed to his side. The man charged toward him, and in a second Spider-Man jumped, backflipped, and kicked him back to the wall and through the window. The man fell out and screamed the whole way down. As soon as Spider-Man reached the window, the man was already dead. A crowd of policemen were gathered around him, and one looked up to see Spider-Man.

  
  


"Hey, who's that?" asked the officer.

  
  


"Get a spotlight up there!" yelled the commander of the squad. 

  
  


A large spotlight was activated and shined directly on Spider-Man. He instinctively climbed out the window and started toward the roof. Two officers began firing on him while he climbed. He considered webbing them both, but that was a waste of time, so he just kept climbing. He made it to the roof, ran to the opposite side, fired a webline, and swung to safety. Spider-Man continued to swing, wandering aimlessly for half an hour. He needed a place to be by himself. A place where nobody could possibly go. And he found it. After his half hour search, he stopped at the Empire State Building.

  
  


Spider-Man held on to the side of the building and panted. He sat on its side, staring into the sky as raindrops hit his head. The sky was so dark, and it was lonely. But he wanted to be alone right now. He needed it. "Uncle Ben, I'm so sorry. I failed you. If I had acted when I could have, you...you would still be alive! Why didn't I stop that man? I could have done something! I was too worried about myself to give a damn about what's really important! And now...you're dead. And it's all my fault..."

  
  


Spider-Man climbed to the top of the building and stood up, proud and tall. "Well, no more! I made the biggest mistake of my life, but I'll never let that happen again! I have these powers, and that gives me the ability to help people! I should have known the right way when this first happened! With great power comes great responsibility! I'll never forget that! I'll never neglect my duties again! As long as I'm alive, Spider-Man will live up to his duties! I owe it to you, Uncle Ben!"

  
  
  
  
  
  


The present. Spider-Man opened his eyes and looked up. "Well, that was a nice stroll down memory lane. It seemed like it happened just yesterday, too." He released the building and started to swing away. Now that the bank robbery was stopped, maybe the police would give him a little bit of credit for the things he did. He decided to forget about it, since his life was going to get somewhat easier. He was planning to see Gwen the next day, and then he would hang out with Harry. Peter Parker and Spider-Man were having a pretty good existence, for a change.

  
  


Norman Osborne inhaled the smoke from one of his finest Cuban cigars and smiled. He was in a meeting with two very important potential business partners, and if they were smart men, they wouldn't dare bitch about a little smoke. "So, gentlemen, do we have an agreement?"

  
  


One man, Professor John Stillwell, stood up and extended his hand. "Mr. Osborne, you have a deal. It will be a pleasure working with you. But what about Mr. Jordan over here?" Professor Stillwell motioned to another man that was sitting next to him.

  
  


"I'm not sure. What about surveillance cameras?" asked Jordan.

  
  


"Not a problem. They have all been deactivated. If I say the word, ANYTHING can be altered in any way I see fit around here. Your identity is safe," said Osborne.

  
  


"Well, Mr. Osborne, I would say you have just made two new business associates," said Jordan.

  
  


"I'm very pleased to hear that. Well, I think that the Jade Syndicate could benefit from a partnership with Osborne Chemicals," said Osborne.

  
  


"I agree. With your funds, Mr. Osborne, and your resources, Mr. Jordan, as well as my technological genius, we could become the most powerful organization imaginable," said Stillwell.

  
  


"Shall we celebrate, gentlemen?" Osborne pulled a box out of his desk and placed it on top. All three of the men smiled and enjoyed some fine Cuban cigars.

  
  


Spider-Man climbed the wall of the school and crouched on top. The school day had just ended, so Peter was able to sneak around to the back of the school and put on his costume. Once on top, he stared down at the students as they passed by. He was looking for one person in particular. He searched through a crowd of about three hundred people. Then, he found who he was looking for. Gwen walked out of the school and met with a few of her friends. After they talked for awhile, Gwen walked down the street and went in the direction of her house. Spider-Man jumped from roof to roof and followed her. He wanted to know why he hadn't seen her much lately, so he decided to investigate. She walked three blocks before Spider-Man saw a group of hands snap out at her and pull her into an alley. Spider-Man swung to a building across the street and peered down on Gwen. "What's going on here?" he whispered to himself.

  
  
  
  
  
  


"So, what did your old man say, Ms. Stacy?" asked one of four men.

  
  


"The answer is still 'no'. My father doesn't accept bribes. There's this little thing he has called pride," answered Gwen.

  
  


"That's not smart. He knows the penalty for refusing an offer from our employer. Maybe he didn't take us seriously," said the second man in the group.

  
  


"Too bad, 'cuz I would feel real bad having to kill a pretty chick like you," said the third man.

  
  


"Maybe we should have some fun with her first," said the last man.

  
  


"If you want to have fun, guys, then why don't we play 'Wack A Mole'? You guys can be the moles!"

  
  


Spider-Man dropped from the roof and took one man out with a diving kick. The others drew semi-automatic pistols and fired at him. Although he didn't know why, he knew where each bullet would hit, and he moved his body in all sorts of twists, turns, and flips so he could dodge the bullets. He jumped back to the wall, pushed off with his feet, flew forward, and knocked the next man out with a kick to the temple. He kicked the next man in the head while in midair and landed. "You know, you guys could win if you would stop blocking my foot with your head!" Suddenly, the buzz in his head rang again, and he saw the last man grab Gwen and press his gun to her temple.

  
  


"Stay away from me! I'll kill this bitch!" yelled the gunman.

  
  


"Okay, if you insist. See you later. Have fun." said Spider-Man. He turned around and started to climb the wall, but he stopped half way up and turned around. "Just kidding!" He snapped out his arm, and the man found himself being dragged across the ground and eventually up the wall. Spider-Man pulled him up with a web, then he attached one end of it to a pole that was twenty feet in the air. He shot another web that held him in place, then he climbed down so that they were face to face. "Okay, you know the routine. I know this was no random attack, so tell me: why did you attack that girl?"

  
  


"You won't get a thing out of me! I'll never tell!"

  
  


"I don't think you understand. You are in no position to argue or negotiate. I, on the other hand, hold all the cards. So, you can tell me the name of your boss, or you can be scraped off of the pavement. Your choice."

  
  


"...Fine. I'll tell you."

  
  


"So, who's your boss?"

  
  


"My boss is...Norman Osborne."

  
  


"What did you say? Norman Osborne?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"Yeah, that's right. I told you, now let me down!"

  
  


"Not yet. Why would he have you do something like this?"

  
  


"Because that girl's dad is a police captain. You know, Captain George Stacy?"

  
  


"What would he want with a police captain?"

  
  


"Simple. He wants to build his empire. He figures that having connections in the police department will do him some good."

  
  


"Build his empire? But, he's the richest man in New York!"

  
  


"Yeah, maybe so, but he wants more power. There, I said it, now let me go!"

  
  


"Of course...in an hour. That's when the webbing will dissolve. Hopefully, the cops will have you down by then."

  
  


"That's not fair!"

  
  


"Hey, life's not fair, buddy! If life were fair, this costume wouldn't get so itchy!"

  
  


Spider-Man dropped back to the alley and landed in front of Gwen. She stepped back until her back was to the wall. "Are you alright, Ms. Stacy?" She didn't say anything back. She just stared at him and inched her way out of the alley. "What's wrong?"

  
  


"Just stay away from me, you freak!" yelled Gwen. She quickly ran out of the alley with Spider-Man, who was totally confused, staring after her. He scratched the back of his head and tried to figure out what had just happened.

  
  


"Freak?"

  
  


All the way across the city, Stillwell was just completing his work. A bunch of engineers stood around him, each of them staring at their newest accomplishment: the newest model of the Wing Bomber. Jordan entered the room with a hooded man standing behind him. "How is it, John?"

  
  


"Finished. We have made great progress, I'm proud to say," said Stillwell.

  
  


Jordan turned to the hooded man and nodded. The man in the hood examined the Wing Bomber, then he smiled beneath his mask. He was pleased now. His plans were finally becoming reality. "Excellent."

  
  


"Now, let's go over your new tools. Of course you have the Wing Bomber. In fact, I'm surprised you were able to master it so quickly. Anyway, you also have these handsome items." Stillwell turned to several orange, pumpkin shaped objects that were concealed in a case. "These were provided by Mr. Jordan and his Jade Syndicate. These Pumpkin Grenades look totally harmless, but they pack as much power as a normal grenade. We thought that shaping them like pumpkins would fit your persona."

  
  


"Speaking of which, just what are you planning on calling yourself?" asked Jordan.

  
  


The man stepped forward so that everyone could see him. Slowly, he pulled his hood off and exposed his green face and red eyes. Everybody turned their attention to him and remained silent so they could hear his message. "You may call me... The Green Goblin."

  
  


Peter walked into the house and plopped onto the couch. He was incredibly bored. Being Spider-Man was entirely too easy for him. Nobody out there was really worth fighting. Peter decided to focus his mind on other things. Money was most important at the moment. He already spent all of the money he had earned as Spider-Man, and he stopped his show biz career after Uncle Ben died, but he still wanted more money. He flipped through the Classifieds section of the newspaper and scanned the pages. Eventually, he found something interesting. There was an ad for a newspaper called the Daily Bugle, which happened to be the paper he was reading. The ad stated that they were in need of a good photographer. Peter decided that he could do that.

  
  


After a quick web trip to Manhattan, Peter shed his costume and walked into the building of the Daily Bugle. The place was so busy that it stunned him. All around people were gathering information, making phone calls, and reading facts. Peter walked up to the front desk and grabbed an application form. Before he could write his information, the secretary behind the counter stopped him. "Excuse me sir, but how old are you?" she asked.

  
  


"I'm seventeen," he answered.

  
  


"I'm sorry, but you have to be at least eighteen to work here."

  
  


"Even to be a photographer?"

  
  


"That's right."

  
  


"Well, actually, I'm a freelance photographer. I just thought you guys would want my help, but I guess I was wrong."

  
  


"Wait a minute. Maybe something can be arranged. Come with me."

  
  


The secretary led Peter to an elevator that took them up to the top floor. Once on top, they stepped into a large room that had the words "Editor-in-Chief" on the door. They entered, and Peter was now standing in the office of the manager of the Daily Bugle: J. Jonah Jamison.

  
  


"Mr. Jamison..."

  
  


"WHAT?" yelled Jamison.

  
  


"This young man is here to see you. He's a freelance photographer."

  
  


"So what? Unless he's got pictures of Spider-Man, I'm not interested!"

  
  


The secretary turned to Peter. "He's all yours. Good luck." She walked out of the office, leaving only Peter and Jamison in the room. Peter cleared his throat and prepared to speak, but Jamison spoke first.

  
  


"Well, do you have pictures of Spider-Man or not?" asked Jamison.

  
  


"Well, no sir, but I could get you pictures of him," answered Peter.

  
  


"Oh really? I don't know why, but I think I'll give you a chance. In fact, I feel so generous, I'll even _give _you a camera!" Jamison reached into a small closet and handed him a camera. "I guess it's because we're so desperate for good photos right now. What's your name, kid?"

  
  


"Peter Parker, sir. Thank you for giving me this chance. You must really like Spider-Man."

  
  


"What? Are you crazy? I hate that stupid web-head! He's just some nut in red and blue pajamas who runs around littering the city with his silly webs!"

  
  


"Oh, I see." So now he was hated by Jamison, Gwen, the police...

  
  


Jamison turned his attention to his television, which was airing a live story. He turned the volume up, and Peter walked around the desk to see what was going on.

  
  


_This just in: There have been reports of a crazed man attacking individuals on Wall Street. The man is said to have been... flying around on a giant bat. We are not making this up, people. We now go live to the scene, where the person in question has apparently demanded that the vigilante known as Spider-Man meet him immediately. We will show you footage as it happens, and... AH!"_

  
  


__The screen turned black for a moment, and then a "Please Stand By" message appeared on the screen. Jamison stood up and put on his coat. "If you want to convince me, get some pictures of this!" Jamison ran out of the room. Once he was gone, Peter removed his shirt, revealing the top of his costume.After he was fully in costume, he webbed his clothes to a wall in an alley and then perched on the wall. With a quick turn of the wrist, Spider-Man fired his webline and started to swing toward Wall Street.__

  
  
  
  


Wall Street was littered with scattering people. The only thing that could be heard was the screams of people who feared for their lives. At the center of all the chaos was one man. The Green Goblin lit another Pumpkin Grenade and tossed it over his shoulder. Four seconds later, it exploded. "Enjoy the fireworks, folks! They are just a prelude to the greatest battle of all time! You will all bare witness to the battle of The Green Goblin and Spider-Man!"

  
  


"Face it, gruesome! These people would rather see Tyson/Holyfield 3!"

  
  


The Goblin looked up and saw Spider-Man fall toward him. They stared at each other without saying anything until the Goblin broke the silence with laughter. "Such a dramatic entrance, my friend! I applaud your showmanship!"

  
  


"Wish I could say the same for your fashion sense," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"It would seem that your insolence could rival my sheer strength," said the Goblin.

  
  


"You're probably right. So, what's your story? With a complexion like yours, I figure your parading around on a quest for revenge against the lotion company!"

  
  


"Although your lackluster comedy stylings have amused me somewhat, I am afraid I must be blunt. I demand a battle with you. I _require_ it. You see, I have been keeping track of your recent activities, and I must say that I am impressed."

  
  


"So now you want to see how good I really am, right?"

  
  


"Exactly. Only then can I test my power."

  
  


"Makes sense to me. Everybody wants a piece of the new guy. Fine, take your shot."

  
  


"With pleasure!"

  
  


The Goblin jumped onto the Wing Bomber and floated off of the ground. He flew forward at high speeds with his sights set on Spider-Man. At the last second, Spider-Man jumped to the side and dodged the Wing Bomber, then he caught its tip with a web. The Wing Bomber carried him into the sky, and the Goblin purposely flew higher. Spider-Man climbed the webline to the glider and lifted himself up. Before he could act, the Goblin smashed him on the side of the head with an elbow strike. Spider-Man fell from the glider and grabbed its bottom at the last second, then he crawled to the front. He grappled with the Goblin and tried to gain leverage, but he was overpowered and lifted overhead. The Goblin lifted him into the air and threw him into the side of a building. As he slid down the building, Spider-Man caught himself and turned around. He saw a flaming pumpkin flying straight at him, so he let himself fall. The grenade smashed through a window and exploded, knocking Spider-Man several feet away. He found himself falling, but his descent stopped suddenly. The Goblin caught him with one arm and brought his elbow down on his back with the other. He flew closer to the ground and threw Spider-Man it into with all the force in his body. The fight was over. Spider-Man failed.

Spider-Man slowly lifted himself off the ground and supported himself on his hands and knees. He watched the Goblin slowly float to the ground with his arms crossed and his lips curled into a wide smile. "You didn't even hit me once, Spider-Man. Not one time." The Goblin stepped off of the Wing Bomber, walked to Spider-Man, and stared down at him with disgust. Spider-Man felt his ribs crack when the Goblin kicked him in his side. The strength in his body seemed to slip away, and he lay still with the Goblin laughing at him. "You were a fool for accepting my challenge, Spider-Man! This was just a taste of my power! Soon, the world will know the might of the Green Goblin! Remember this day, Spider-Man! Think of what I am capable of doing!" The Goblin stepped back onto the Wing Bomber and flew away. Spider-Man was left lying on the ground with a crowd of people staring at him.

  
  


His ribs hurt. He was dazed from the explosion. Spider-Man was defeated. Just when he wondered if there would be a good challenge, this mysterious Green Goblin appeared and beat him. Even though he was hurt, Spider-Man was more embarrassed than anything. He would have felt better if it were a hard-fought battle, but he was totally outclassed by the Goblin. 

  
  


Spider-Man slowly rose to his feet and stared at the crowd. Some people cheered him for trying, others laughed at him. Some of them were shocked to see two superpowered people fighting like that. Spider-Man didn't have any time to react to them, because police arrived on the scene in seconds. Each of them jumped from their cars and aimed their weapons at him. An officer shouted something into a megaphone, but Spider-Man didn't know what. He didn't care what the police had to say. He just wanted to leave. He started to walk away when he felt the buzz in his head. Spider-Man jumped to a wall just in time to dodge a bullet from one of the officers and fired a web at him. Several more shots were fired, and one bullet grazed his arm. They continued to fire at him as he tried to climb the building. Spider-Man considered his options, and it seemed that fighting the police was actually safer than climbing a wall while they shot him in the back.

  
  


Spider-Man dropped from the building and fired another web on the way down. He caught one policeman with it and slammed him into two of his partners. Once he had landed, another officer fired at him. This bullet just missed his head. He decided to fight offensively instead of defensively. Spider-Man jumped into the crowd of policeman and threw punch after punch after punch, knocking several of them unconscious. He bounced off of the shoulders of one officer, fired a webline, and used it to swing to a building across the street. Once he was on it, he climbed to the top and took a deep breath. It seemed that he had finally gotten away from the police. But he was wrong. He felt the tingling in his head again and heard a voice boom in his ears. "Freeze!"

  
  


Spider-Man looked up. A police helicopter floated above him, and there was a man standing inside of it with a megaphone. "Surrender now, or we will be forced to open fire!" Spider-Man wasn't quite sure what to do. He was strong, but there was no way he was going to take on a helicopter. His webs wouldn't have helped either. He looked around for anything that could be used to his advantage, but there wasn't anything. Since he didn't see any other options, he did the obvious thing: he ran like hell.

  
  


Spider-Man ran to the opposite end of the building while bullets trailed after him. He jumped from the roof and let himself drop for a few seconds. Then, at just the right time, he caught a pole with a web and used it to circle back to a building on his right. Once he was on it, he took off again. The chopper followed him and fired at him the entire time. Spider-Man jumped between buildings and eventually stopped in an alley, where he placed his back to a wall and waited. The chopper flew around the building a few times while the man inside grabbed a pair of binoculars and scanned the rooftops. "I don't see him. Drop off the sniper." The chopper lowered slightly, and a man with a sniper rifle dropped to the roof.

  
  


Everything seemed to be okay, so Spider-Man climbed to the top of another building. He saw the chopper hovering over another building. As he prepared to run, the buzzing went off again. The sniper fired a shot, but the bullet hit nothing but air. He looked up from his rifle and realized that Spider-Man had dodged the bullet and was already on his way to another building. He aimed again and had Spider-Man right in his sights. He fired again, and in the split second that the bullet moved through the air, Spider-Man shuffled to the side and dodged it without even looking at it. The sniper fired two wild shots, but he knew he would miss his target with them. He had one bullet left, so he had to be careful. He aimed, struggled to keep his arm steady, and fired. The bullet flew through the air and hit its target. 

As Spider-Man was in mid-swing, he heard a snap above his head. The sniper's bullet hit the web and snapped it, causing Spider-Man to fall. He held out one hand and pressed his fingers to his palm, but nothing happened. "My web cartridge is empty!" He fell toward the ground and started to panic. Then he remembered his other web-shooter. He held out the other hand and pressed his fingers to his palm, but once again nothing happened. "What are the odds?" Spider-Man continued to fall with seemingly no way of saving himself. He looked around, and luckily for him, there was a streetlight right below him. He grabbed it and used it to swing to the top of a bus. He saw two officers on the sidewalk, who immediately started shooting at him. He let his body lay flat on top of the bus so the bullets flew overhead. Once he was off of that street, Spider-Man let the bus ride him to safety.

  
  


The bus stopped in front of the Daily Bugle. Spider-Man jumped from the bus to the building and crawled into the alley. He examined the wound on his arm. Luckily, it was just a flesh wound. The bullet only grazed his arm. But that was the only bit of good news for him. He was wounded, the police were after him, somebody was after Gwen, she hated him too, he was out of web fluid, his costume was torn, this mysterious Green Goblin beat him up, and on top of all that, he didn't even get any pictures to sell to Jamison. He thought his life would be easier after becoming Spider-Man, but things were just getting more difficult. Spider-Man decided to forget about everything for the moment and go home. After all, it was Friday night. He could hang out with Harry or something.

  
  


Spider-Man climbed to his clothes, which were still webbed to the wall. He grabbed them and jumped to the ground, then he started to put them on. As he reached to pull off his mask, he felt the buzz in his head. He looked around, but he saw nobody. Spider-Man decided to ignore it. He removed his mask and put his clothes on over the costume. Little did he know that he was being watched. The Green Goblin hovered over the Daily Bugle and smiled.

When Peter arrived home, May was already preparing dinner. She saw Peter enter the house, but something was different about him. He looked as if he were under a lot of stress. May ran out of the kitchen and hugged Peter. "Peter, where have you been? I was so worried! I thought you had been killed!"

  
  


"Why, Aunt May?" asked Peter.

  
  


"You know! Because of that horrible Spider-Man!" 

  
  


"Hor... horrible?"

  
  


"That's right! He's a menace, and so is that goblin thing that attacked those innocent people!"

  
  


"But, Aunt May, Spider-Man tried to help those people. He tried to fight the Goblin."

  
  


"I don't think so. If you ask me, I would say those two are working together. They're both criminals!"

  
  


"But, what crime has Spider-Man committed?"

  
  


"Well, it's certainly not legal to be a vigilante. Nor is it legal to attack the police."

  
  


"He wasn't attacking them. They were attacking him. He's misunderstood."

  
  


"Peter, I'm telling you, that Spider-Man is a menace."

  
  


"I think he's quite a hero. I mean, he did fight the Goblin without any help."

  
  


"How do you know that, Peter?"

  
  


"Well...um...word travels fast?"

  
  


"I suppose. Well, you should get ready for dinner, dear."

  
  


"Okay."

  
  


Peter walked to his room and picked up the telephone. He wanted to call Harry before he ate. The phone rang, but nobody picked up. After twenty rings, he hung up. It wasn't really cause for concern, though. Harry was rarely home on Friday nights. Even still, Peter needed somebody to talk to. It seemed best to go talk to Aunt May. Peter stood up and started to leave the room, but he stopped when the tingling in his head returned. He saw something out of the corner of his eye, and he stepped to the window. He stuck his head out and looked down, but there was nothing. Then, he heard laughter above him. Peter looked up and jumped back. Above him, hidden by shadows, was the Green Goblin.

  
  


"What are doing here?" asked Peter.

  
  


"Why, I'm just going out for a nice stroll in a pleasant neighborhood. Surely that's not illegal?" said the Goblin.

  
  


"I repeat: what are you doing here?"

  
  


"Peter, my boy, if it were illegal to walk around in elaborate costumes, you would have been arrested quite some time ago."

  
  


"What are you talking about?"

  
  


"Don't try to hide the truth, Peter! I know the truth. And you know exactly what I am talking about."

  
  


"The truth? I don't know what you mean."

  
  


"Yes you do! Face it, Parker! I know your secret!"

  
  


"Alright, I admit it. I wear teddy bear underwear. You happy?"

  
  


"Hm... the same pitiful humor. Now, I am certain. You are Spider-Man!"

  
  


"Sorry, buddy, but you got the wrong guy. In reality, I'm actually Batman!"

  
  


"Your insolence is uncalled for, Spider-Man."

  
  


"Look, you whacko, I am not Spider-Man!"

  
  


"Oh really? Well, perhaps we should see what your dear Aunt May thinks about that!"

  
  


"Leave her out of this! Look, let's say for a second that I am Spider-Man. What do you want with him?"

  
  


"I want to let you know that my power is growing. I know your secret, I have followers, and I am unstoppable! This is a test, Spider-Man! I want to see if you are prepared for my rein."

  
  


"Test? What test?"

  
  


"You will see soon enough! Farewell for now, Spider-Man. Oh, and give my regards to Gwen Stacy."

  
  


"If you go anywhere near her, I'll kill you!"

  
  


"You can't kill me, boy! I am the Green Goblin! I am your superior!"

The next day, Peter arose early and got to work. He still had some of his web formula left, so he was able to use it to make more samples. After making more fluid and refilling his web-shooters, Peter retrieved his needle and thread and started to repair his costume. It only took ten minutes to sow it back up. After he was done, he put the costume on and grabbed the camera that Jamison gave him. He webbed it to his waist and picked up the remote for the TV. He turned to the news and payed close attention. About a minute into the program, there was news about another bank robbery. Spider-Man jumped out of the window and headed for the bank.

  
  


The whole trip over, Spider-Man tried to piece together what happened the day before. Apparently, the Green Goblin new about his secret identity, but how? How could he have found out? And who is he? When did he figure it out? Then, he thought about it. The alley outside of the Daily Bugle. When Spider-Man was dressing, he felt that weird buzz but he didn't know why. It must have been alerting him to the Goblin. He always felt that buzz whenever something was wrong. This buzz, this Spider-Sense, might help him in the future.

  
  


Spider-Man arrived at the bank and climbed in through the window. He placed the camera to a wall and held it in place with a web. This was an automatic camera. It would take a picture every five seconds for twenty seconds, so he had to act fast. Spider-Man dropped from the wall...SNAP!...and kicked a man in the back of the head. He turned and caught another man with a web...SNAP!...and threw him into a wall. Two men ran toward him with knives. He jumped above their weapons and kicked them both in the head...SNAP! The last man fired at him. Spider-Man jumped over the bullet and tackled the man. The man's head hit the ground, and he was out cold. Spider-Man stood over the beaten men, turned to his camera, and gave it the thumbs up. The camera snapped and caught his pose. Spider-Man shot webs down on every man, then he grabbed his camera and left.

  
  


His next stop was the Daily Bugle. Spider-Man jumped into the alley and grabbed a web sack from his back. He opened it and took out his clothes. After he was dressed, he entered as Peter Parker. Peter entered the building and walked up to the receptionist's counter. After he told her his name, she told him that Jamison was expecting him. Peter went to the elevator and went to the top. He knocked on Jamison's door and waited. Two seconds later, an old man was screaming in his face.

  
  


"Parker! You loser! What took you so long? If you don't have pictures of Spider-Man..." started Jamison.

  
  


"I do have pictures of Spider-Man, Mr. Jamison!" finished Peter.

  
  


"Well, let's see them!"

  
  


"Well, sir, I haven't developed them yet."

  
  


"You idiot! Look, down the hall, third door on the left. You can develop them there, bonehead!"

  
  


"Thank you, sir. I... bonehead?"

Peter walked down the hallway into a room that was tinted with a red light. He started to develop his photos, and as they came into focus, he noticed something. After they developed, he held one picture up and examined it. Although it was hard to see, the Green Goblin could be seen flying outside of the window. "He's been watching me. Somehow, I have to figure out where he's coming from. If I know who he is, that may make things simpler." Peter gathered all of his photos and walked back to Jamison's office. Before he could even touch the knob, the door swung open.

  
  


"Parker! Where the hell are my photos?" yelled Jamison.

  
  


"They're right here, Mr. Jamison!" Peter handed the pictures to Jamison.

  
  


"These... these are pretty good! How did you get photos like these, Parker?"

  
  


"A true photographer never tells his secrets!"

  
  


"Well, I guess. Just as long as you can supply me with good pictures like these, I don't care what your methods are!"

  
  


"You... you mean..."

  
  


"You're hired, kid! Starting now, you are an official member of the Daily Bugle team!"

  
  


"Really? Thank you! Wait 'til I tell Aunt May!"

  
  


"Leave me your address and phone number, kid. You'll get a check in about a week."

  
  


"Thanks, Mr. Jamison!"

  
  


After all of his business was settled, Peter caught a bus in the direction of Harry's house. When he got off, he stared at the huge house that he had visited hundreds of times before. It never ceased to amaze him how big this house was. The front lawn was 100 acres in diameter, and it was furnished with two fountains and a huge angel statue. If you were to walk around the house, it would be considered a good workout. Peter always thought that it would be cool to live in a huge house like that, but it was incredibly lonesome in there. Harry knew that more than anybody.

  
  


Peter approached a gate that was in front of the house. A man in the house recognized Peter through a surveillance camera and opened the gate. Peter walked up to the house and rang the bell. He stood there and waited, but there was nobody. He reached for the bell again, but before he could actually reach it, Harry appeared in the door. Peter was shocked to see him. His hair obviously had not seen a comb in a couple of days, and there were dark bags under his eyes. Harry squinted at Peter before realizing it was him. He gave a weak smile and leaned against the door. Peter wasn't sure what to say. Something was wrong with Harry.

  
  


"Hey Pete. Seems like you finally got your nose out of the books. What's up?" asked Harry.

  
  


"Nothing much. I was just wondering what you were up to. Thought maybe you wanted to hang out," said Peter.

  
  


"Sorry, Petey-O, but I'm kinda busy right now."

  
  


"Doing what?"

  
  


"Oh, nothing much. Just stimulating my mind and stuff."

  
  


"You mean studying?"

  
  


"Pete, you are so naive! No, I'm not studying."

  
  


"Harry, you're not talking about what I think you're talking about, are you?"

  
  


"Depends, man. What do you think?"

  
  


"I don't even want to guess."

  
  


"Whatever. Hey, what day is today, anyway?"

  
  


"It's Saturday, Harry. How long have you been in the house?"

  
  


"Um... since yesterday, I think. Yeah, it was yesterday, because I remember going to school yesterday."

  
  


"Harry, you were not in school yesterday. That's why I called last night. You never left last night?"

  
  


"Nope, I been here since... since whenever."

  
  


"Harry, tell me what's wrong."

  
  


"Nothing's wrong, buddy! Look, I'm gonna get back to what I was doing. I'll see you on Monday in school, okay?"

  
  


"Yeah, okay. I'll see you later."

  
  


Peter stood in shock as the door closed in front of him. Something was obviously wrong. He needed to know what was wrong with Harry, but he wasn't making much progress. That's okay, he thought. If Peter couldn't do anything to help Harry, then Spider-Man would.

  
  
  
  


Peter walked out of the gate and out of the range of the cameras. Once he was off the premises, he made a quick change into Spider-Man and jumped above the steel walls that separated the yard from the sidewalk. He made a jump from the wall to one of the fountains and placed his back to it, then he ran to the side of the house and jumped onto its side. He climbed to a few windows and peeked in, but there was nothing. Finally, he found what he was looking for. He saw Harry sitting in his room. At first, nothing seemed to be wrong. But then he was worried. Harry grabbed two pills from his dresser, put them in his mouth, and drank a glass of water. Spider-Man wouldn't have been worried if Harry didn't start laughing a minute later. This was no average laugh. Harry was laughing hysterically, as if he had just heard the funniest joke of all time. He stood up, still laughing, and left the room.

  
  


Spider-Man let himself in through the window and started to look around. There were more pills on the dresser. He picked one up and examined it. He had a feeling about it, as if he knew what it was, but he didn't know just what. Then, it hit him. He dropped the pill on the dresser and stared at it. Finally, he realized what was happening. "LSD. Harry is using LSD..." Spider-Man couldn't believe it. His best friend was becoming an addict. He felt as though he should do something, but what? What could Spider-Man possibly do? He could fight terrorists and bank robbers, but he couldn't save his own friend from killing himself. "LSD... in a gel form. Is he insane?" Spider-Man stared at the drugs for awhile, then he grabbed every pill and crushed each of them in his hand. He threw the dust out of the window and watched it fall to the ground. That was the least he could possibly do. All the superpowers in the world wouldn't be able to save Harry. Spider-Man was helpless to save his friend. "Harry, what's happening to you?"

  
  


Peter was too depressed to do anything for the rest of the day. He didn't even feel like fighting crime, which usually boosted his spirits. He just stuffed the costume under his bed and lay there silent and still for nearly an hour. The whole time he lay there, the same questions ran through his head. Why is Harry doing this? Why won't he talk to me? What can I do? Peter knew that there were no simple answers to his questions.

  
  


Norman Osborne was a happy man. His empire was growing by the minute, his friends were loyal to him, and there was nobody who could oppose him. Absolutely nobody. Not even Spider-Man. He walked into an office where Jordan and Stillwell were talking. Without a word, he grabbed a cigar, lit it, and sat down. "So, how are things?" 

  
  


"Maybe you should tell us, Norman. You fought him yourself. How was it?" asked Jordan.

  
  


"It was... interesting. He wasn't as formidable as the media would have you think. And yet, he was able to withstand a beating that no normal man would be able to endure," said Osborne.

  
  


"It sounds like you're impressed," said Stillwell.

  
  


"Oh, I am, I am. Of course, the game is not yet over," said Osborne.

  
  


"What do you mean?" asked Jordan.

  
  


Osborne leaned back in his chair and smiled. He loved the drama of unfolding his plans. It gave him a sense of power. He inhaled some smoke before continuing. "He is not my only enemy. There are others. Others like Captain George Stacy. Others who repeatedly try my patience. Stacy is obviously a fool if he would dare to deny my offer. He could have had power if only he had given me connections within the police department. Now, he is at the top of my 'hit list'. Jordan, weren't your men supposed to kill his daughter, Gwen?"

  
  


"Well, yes but..." started Jordan.

  
  


"But they failed," finished Osborne.

  
  


"Now, wait a minute! It was no easy task!"

  
  


"You mean a group of armed men couldn't deal with one unarmed teenage girl?"

  
  


"That's not it. She was rescued. Spider-Man showed up."

  
  


"I see. This is even more interesting."

  
  


"Why is that interesting?" asked Stillwell.

  
  


"I know for a fact that our young Ms. Stacy is someone very close to Spider-Man," said Osborne.

  
  


"What? How do you know that?" asked Jordan.

  
  


"That's for me to know."

  
  


"But the only way for you to know that is if... wait a minute. You know, don't you? You know who Spider-Man is, don't you?"

  
  


"I repeat: that's for me to know."

  
  


"This is incredible! So, who is he? Is he someone famous? He's a singer, isn't he? One of those rapper guys, right? It's Jay-Z, isn't it?"

  
  


"Perhaps I did not make myself clear. Spider-Man's identity is to be known by me and only me. All you have to do is keep your end of the bargain and make damn sure that my empire grows. Understood?"

  
  


"... Yes, I understand."

  
  


"So, what do you have planned next, Mr. Osborne?" asked Stillwell.

  
  


"I think Gwen Stacy will be receiving a visit from the Green Goblin very soon."

  
  


It was Monday now. Spider-Man hadn't been out the entire weekend. Peter had no intention of wasting his weekend putting his life on the line for ingrates. He was looking forward for it to end, in fact. Although he didn't want to, Peter wore his costume under his clothes. People may hate him and the police might want to kill him, but Peter still had his responsibilities.

  
  


When Peter walked into his homeroom, he was shocked. Not only was Gwen in school, but so was Harry. But something was wrong. Gwen looked distant, as if she had a lot on her mind, and Harry looked like hell. He was the worse looking of the two. Peter had a feeling that he hadn't destroyed Harry's whole stash of LSD. He wanted to talk to his friends, but he had nothing to say. Only one thing was really normal in the room: Flash Thompson was making an ass of himself again. At least some things stay the same, he thought.

  
  


The day was pretty boring to Peter. There was nothing out of the ordinary in school. Normally, that would be fine to him, but being Spider-Man gave him a new thirst for adventure. The day was pretty straightforward until something special happened. During the last period of the day, Peter was in his Social Science class. He was only slightly interested when the teacher announced that there was going to be a special guest speaker. The teacher stood at the front of the room and spoke. "Class, I think you'll be very interested in the speaker I have for you today."

  
  


"Hey, if it ain't a Playboy bunny, I ain't interested!" said Flash.

  
  


"Pardon me, Eugene," said the teacher.

  
  


"It's Flash, got it? Flash!"

  
  


"Yes, well, I think that you will be impressed by our speaker. Especially since you will be spending most of your life around men of his profession. I introduce to you Captain George Stacy."

  
  


Peter wasn't bored anymore. He had always admired the police captain. He was certain that Captain Stacy was the only non-corrupt cop in all of New York. Then he remembered that he was Gwen's father. He wondered if he would be arrested for proposing to Gwen or something.

  
  


Captain Stacy entered the room and introduced himself to the class. After he explained his job to everyone, he asked the class if there were any questions. One student asked him if he was present during the fight between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin.

  
  


"Well, yes I was. You see, Spider-Man is currently wanted for questioning, and we needed to talk to him. But some fool decided to attack him. So now, we have no idea where he is. But he's committed no crime."

  
  


Peter was relieved at that. He could try to clear himself by just talking to Captain Stacy. Things seemed to be going his way. He looked at the clock and realized that the day would be over in a minute. He was going to start packing his bag, but he stopped. His Spider-Sense was going crazy. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a pumpkin grenade out of the window.

  
  


The grenade crashed through the window. Peter jumped in between it and Captain Stacy and swatted it back out of the window. The grenade landed five feet away from the building and exploded. Peter looked through the smoke and dust to see a figure flying right at him. The Green Goblin flew through the concrete wall and grabbed Peter in midair. He rammed him into a wall and dropped him to the floor. "Don't try to be a hero, boy! You're no Spider-Man!" The Goblin descended and stood next to Gwen. "You seem a little pale, my dear." Captain Stacy immediately drew a revolver on him.

  
  


"Get away from her! " said Captain Stacy.

  
  


The Goblin turned around, slapped the gun from his hand, and punched him across the room in one movement. "That was a foolish mistake, Stacy." The Goblin lifted him up by the collar and slapped him. Then he punched him. He punched him once more and turned to Gwen. "Young lady, please explain to your fool of a father that opposing me is like a death wish." He dropped the captain and walked to Gwen. "You're not scared, are you? Fear not, your pain will be brief."

  
  


"But you're pain will be everlasting!"

  
  


The Goblin looked up and felt two heels on the side of his face. He stumbled back and looked at Spider-Man. "So, you decided to join the game! Splendid!"

  
  


"This is no game, Goblin. If you want a fight, then here I am," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"You have no idea how complex this is, Spider-Man. This is no simple battle of good versus evil. This is destiny!"

  
  


"What are you talking about?"

  
  


"I was destined to be this way! Don't you see? I was destined to be the Green Goblin! Do you know what that means?"

"I think it means you're nuts. You're not making any sense, but I'm not interested in your psycho babble anyway. Let's just finish this."

  
  


"As you wish, Spider-Man!" The Goblin pointed a finger at Spider-Man.

  
  


"What are you pointing at?"

  
  


"I would like to show you my newest weapon."

  
  


"Newest weapon?"

  
  


"That's right! And it will be your undoing!"

  
  


"This is a little device that will generate heat energy. The beautiful thing is: all of this power is concealed in one tiny glove. All I have to do is press every finger except my forefinger to my palm. Observe!"

  
  


The Goblin firmly pressed his other three fingers to his palm. A small laser fired from his finger and flew past Spider-Man's head. It hit a wall and caused a tiny explosion. "Do you understand now? Now you will die!" He aimed toward Gwen and fired. Spider-Man immediately grabbed her and ducked. More lasers came flying their way. Spider-Man held Gwen while moving from side to side and dodging. He was getting tired though, and the Goblin was just getting started. The lasers kept flying. One hit Spider-Man's shoulder and he flinched. Another hit him in his leg. He turned around so that he was standing in between Gwen and the Goblin and felt more lasers hitting him in the back. This would have killed any normal man, but Spider-Man was able to take several shots, which was actually a bad thing. He looked down at Gwen and let her go.

  
  


"Get out of here! Go, now!"

  
  


He didn't have to tell her twice. Gwen ran to her father and shook him. He stood up and held her, and together they left the room. The only ones left were Spider-Man and the Green Goblin. Spider-Man found himself leaning on a table for support. The lasers were still hitting him in the back. The Goblin noticed that he was supporting himself on the table, so he blasted the table and destroyed it. Spider-Man fell on his side and looked up. The Goblin was right over him with his finger pointed at Spider-Man's face. "It was a valiant effort, Spider-Man. Try not to feel too bad." There was silence. Spider-Man had a feeling that he was about to die. He closed his eyes and thought about Aunt May. He felt sorry for leaving her. 

  
  


The silence was broken by a gunshot. The bullet missed, but it was enough to distract the Goblin. Captain Stacy was in the doorway with his revolver in hand. This was the chance he needed. Spider-Man pulled both of his legs back and kicked the Goblin away. In a second, the Goblin was gone. Spider-Man stood up and noticed that the Wing Bomber was gone too. "Damn it! He ran! He could be anywhere!"

  
  


"Wait a second, son. You can't just go off fighting this guy. You're wanted for questioning," said Captain Stacy.

  
  


"There's no time! Look, if I don't stop him, he could kill your daughter," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"... Fine. Go ahead."

  
  


"Where did he go?"

  
  


"Down that hallway."

  
  


Spider-Man left the room and ran down the hall. He looked in every room, but he didn't see anyone. "Where are you, Goblin?"

There was one room left: the science lab. Spider-Man entered the lab. His Spider-Sense was faint, but it was still buzzing. The Goblin had to be close. He moved cautiously and swiftly. His Spider-Sense became more vibrant with each step. Then, it flared. A laser flew by Spider-Man's head and hit a beaker. The contents of the beaker were obviously flammable, because it exploded and caused everything around it to catch fire. The Goblin came out of hiding and fired lasers with both hands. Spider-Man dodged the lasers, jumped over a table, and fired two webs. Both of the webs covered the Goblin's hands. There was a hissing noise, and two lasers shot through the webs. Spider-Man dodged them and fired more webbing. This time, he used it to hold the Goblin in place. He covered his arms, midsection, and legs with the webbing. "You fool! Do you think you can stop me with a mere toy?" It took no effort at all for the Goblin to snap the webs that held him. He reached into a pouch on his waist, grabbed a pumpkin grenade, and threw it. Spider-Man jumped out of the way just in time to avoid the explosion.

  
  


Almost everything around him was on fire. Spider-Man formed a web shield above himself to block debris that was falling toward him. As he made the shield, the Goblin tackled him and rammed him into a wall. The Goblin pounded Spider-Man's ribs with repeated punches. The pain was unimaginable. His ribs would break soon if he didn't do something. Spider-Man jumped a few feet up and held the wall, then he kicked the Goblin in the face, first with his left foot, then with the right, and finally with both feet. The Goblin lit another grenade and prepared to throw it, but Spider-Man knocked it out of his hand with a web. It landed four feet from the Goblin and exploded. Now, the entire room was on fire. Spider-Man dropped from the wall, ran through the flames, and punched the Goblin with a jab. The Goblin retaliated with a hook to the jaw. They stood among the flames and traded punches while everything around them fell apart. The punching match continued for a whole minute. At the same time, Spider-Man pulled back his fist, and the Goblin pulled back his. Spider-Man hit the Goblin in the jaw while the Goblin hit Spider-Man in the stomach. They both dropped to their knees and tried to catch their breath. Spider-Man needed to attack, but he was too tired. He was alarmed by his Spider-Sense. The room was falling apart.

  
  


The Goblin grabbed Spider-Man's throat and squeezed it. Spider-Man found himself about to black out. His Spider-Sense was still flaring, but it wasn't the flames that bothered him. He noticed a girl crouched in a corner. She was trapped by a six foot wall of flame. There was no way she could possibly make it through. Only Spider-Man could help her, but he was a little busy at the moment. "Goblin...let me go... that girl... If you don't let go... she'll be killed..."

  
  


"You really do think I care, don't you?" said the Goblin.

  
  


Spider-Man was more angry than he had been since Uncle Ben's death. How could he have such a disregard for life? He had to help that girl. Spider-Man managed to push the Goblin off of him. Before the Goblin could recover, Spider-Man flew through the air and kicked him in the face. The Goblin backed away and noticed the Wing Bomber. He had to escape. He fired one laser at Spider-Man and another at the wall just behind the girl. Spider-Man was struck by the laser, but he ignored the pain and searched for the Goblin. He was nowhere to be seen. He jumped to the wall next to the girl and picked her up. Then, he dropped to the floor and ran. He carried the girl through the flames and ran as fast as he could. But could he make it?

  
  


Spider-Man ran toward the door, but his exit was cut off with flame. He wanted to turn around and run back, but there was even more fire behind him now. He ran to the left while still carrying the screaming girl. He didn't know what was worse: being caught in a raging inferno or losing his sense of hearing because of a screaming girl.

  
  


The room was in worse shape than when Spider-Man was fighting the Green Goblin. Spider-Man noticed several beakers that were sitting on a counter. Each of them were filled with chemicals. And next to them: five pumpkin grenades. "Don't I have all the luck?" Spider-Man ran faster than before and pushed for the window. He was slightly annoyed at the constant screaming in his ear. "Look, miss, you have a beautiful voice, but this ain't Broadway and now is not the time!" Spider-Man's Spider-Sense rang again. He looked back and saw the flames coming near the chemicals and the pumpkin grenades. The grenades and the chemicals were engulfed with flame. Spider-Man jumped out of the window and shot a web to a pole. As soon as he and the girl swung away, the room exploded. Fire spread everywhere. Some flames reached out past Spider-Man. He completed the swing and let go of the web. The girl screamed even louder than before. She thought that she would fall to her death. Luckily for her, her savior would never allow that to happen. Spider-Man gracefully landed on the roof of another building and set her down.

  
  


"Are you okay, miss?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"I... I... I think so..."

  
  


"Good. Was there anybody in the lab with you just now?"

  
  


"No. I just... I ran into the lab when that Goblin guy attacked everyone and... I was so scared..."

  
  


"Don't worry. He's gone now. I'm sure of it."

  
  


"But you... you got hurt."

  
  


"Yeah, I guess I did."

  
  


"And you saved my life."

  
  


"Hey, that's what Spider-Man is for!"

  
  


"I know. But still... thank you."

  
  


"You don't have to thank me. It was my pleasure."

  
  


Spider-Man stared across the street at the flaming wreckage that was once the lab. Of course, the police would have to blame him for this, too.

  
  


"So..uh... who's gonna pay for all this?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


The police were at the scene for an hour. Spider-Man was perched atop a building, watching all the action. He saw Captain Stacy, who was talking to reporters. Gwen was standing right next to him, which was a relief. Soon, the reporters were gone. Spider-Man reached into his backpack, which he had placed here prior to fighting the Goblin, and grabbed his camera. He took a few pictures of the school, then he put the camera back in the backpack. At least he could make some money.

  
  


George and Gwen Stacy left the scene and walked toward a car that was parked across the street. A man arose from the car and shook Captain Stacy's hand. This was his brother Arthur. Arthur walked over to Gwen and hugged her. "Are you alright, Gwen?"

  
  


"I'm fine, Uncle Arthur," said Gwen.

  
  


"Gwen, you'll be staying with your Uncle Arthur tonight. I'll pick you up so you can get some clothes later, okay?" said George.

  
  


"Alright. Bye dad."

  
  


George watched Gwen and Arthur leave and leaned against a wall. He was tired and confused, and there was a lot of work to be done. A shadow fell over him, and immediately he knew where it came from. He didn't even turn around. "You have some explaining to do," he said.

  
  


"Yeah, I guess I do," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"You want to tell me what this was all about?"

  
  


"Hey, your guess is as good as mine. I just fight 'em, I don't know their plans."

  
  


"That thing almost killed my daughter today. You have no idea how angry that makes me."

  
  


"You would be surprised how much I know about loss."

  
  


"If you can relate, then you should be out catching this guy."

  
  


"I could if I knew who he was! And besides, you're the big police captain!"

  
  


"I'm doing my part, too."

  
  


"Well, if you ask me, I think that the Goblin is after you specifically."

  
  


"Why do you say that?"

  
  


"Look, besides from super-strength, wall crawling, and devilish good looks, I am blessed with a super brain!"

  
  


"Get to the point," said Captain Stacy.

  
  


"Look, it was obvious that he was attacking you and Gwen at the school," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"So? That could have been a coincidence."

  
  


"Maybe, but he also hinted to me that Gwen might be a target of his."

  
  


"That can't be!"

  
  


"Think very carefully. Who would hate you so much that they would try to kill your daughter?"

  
  


"I'm a police captain! I have tons of enemies in this city."

  
  


"Well, who's been bothering you the most lately?"

  
  


"I would have to say Norman Osborne."

  
  


"Osborne? Now that I think about it, his name came up in a conversation I had with one of his flunkies."

  
  


"So, you think Osborne is behind this?"

  
  


"Maybe. But, the Goblin had some pretty high-tech stuff. Osborne's company works with chemicals, not weaponry."

  
  


"That's true. But I hear that his new business partner is Professor John Stillwell. He makes weapons and chemicals."

  
  


"Maybe I should do some investigating on the subject."

  
  


"Don't be stupid. Osborne has resources. Even if he's not the Green Goblin, he could still have you killed."

  
  


"That's a risk that I'll have to take."

  
  


"That's not smart, Spider-Man. You don't even have incriminating evidence."

  
  


"I don't need it. I'm not a cop."

  
  


"So, assuming Osborne is the Green Goblin, what do you plan to do?"

  
  


"What else? I'll kick his green butt!"

  
  
  
  


Spider-Man made a quick trip to Manhattan. His destination was a tall building which was basically Osborne's base of operations. It wasn't the actual building for Osborne Chemicals, but it was the place where all of Osborne's paperwork was done. Spider-Man swung to the building and climbed to the top. He peeked into a window on the top floor and saw Osborne sitting at his desk. Without hesitation, he kicked the window and jumped in. There was shattered glass everywhere, but Osborne didn't really seem to mind. Actually, he was smiling. Spider-Man stood behind him. He was ready to snap Osborne's neck, but he restrained himself.

  
  


"I've been expecting you, Spider-Man," said Osborne.

  
  


"Is that so, Osborne? Or should I call you the Green Goblin?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"Bravo. I knew that the only reason you would come here is if you knew my secret."

  
  


"I would have expected you to deny it."

  
  


"Why would I do that?"

  
  


"Because this room could be bugged."

  
  


"But it's not. If it were, you would have been alerted to it by whatever it is that alerts you to danger."

  
  


"So, why did you attack Captain Stacy at the school?"

  
  


"Spider-Man, you really are naive. I did it for power."

  
  


"You're the richest man in New York. What's the point of wanting more power?"

  
  


"There's always room for power. Why not grasp it if it's within your reach? You should understand that."

  
  


"I don't get it."

  
  


Osborne turned to face Spider-Man and stood up. He walked to the window and looked down. Spider-Man didn't know what to expect. He just stared at Osborne and prepared himself. "It's beautiful, isn't it? This city, I mean. Come take a look." Spider-Man slowly walked to Osborne and looked down. "All of this could be yours, Spider-Man." Osborne hooked his arm around Spider-Man's shoulder and pointed to the scenery below them with his other hand.

  
  


"What are you talking about?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"Power, my friend. Power."

  
  
  
  


"Peter, my boy, all of this could belong to you. We could rule this city, you and I," said Norman.

  
  


"Rule the city?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"That's right. All you have to do is work with me. Join me! Together, we could build the strongest criminal empire the world has ever known!"

  
  


"You mean, if I agree to work with you, all this could be mine?"

  
  


"Absolutely! Why, you could do so many things! Your Aunt May could use a relative who's in power, right?"

  
  


"Yeah, she could..."

  
  


"So what do you say?"

  
  


"...Screw you."

  
  


"WHAT?"

  
  


"Look, there's always been one thing that I have held in high regard, and that's my dignity. If I worked with you, I would be no better than the scum that I face every day. So you can look for a new partner."

  
  


"You don't know what you're losing."

  
  


"I haven't lost a thing. But you... you've lost everything. All you care about is your empire. Don't you care that your son is hooked on LSD?"

  
  


"That was... unfortunate."

  
  


"You're pitiful, Osborne. There's no way I would work with you."

  
  


"Then you will have to die."

  
  


"You couldn't kill me if you tried. You would be in jail before you'd have the chance."

  
  


"Oh, because I'm the Green Goblin? And who would believe _you?_ You are known as the Menace of Manhattan. But I am a respected businessman. I have my power."

  
  


"True, but I have my pride. I'll take you down soon enough, Osborne."

  
  


"You're free to try, Spider-Man. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have an important meeting to attend. I would show you the door, but I'm sure that the window suits you."

  
  


Two hours later, Peter arrived home. He expected Aunt May to be in his face as soon as he walked in the door, but she wasn't there. Peter went upstairs and peeked into her room. She was sound asleep. "She must not have heard about the incident," he whispered to himself. He felt terrible for worrying her the way he usually did. He was always missing when he was Spider-Man, and his grades were starting to slip. Every day, May would wonder what was wrong with him, and every day she would pray that he was okay. She didn't want to lose him like she lost her Ben. Peter thought about how close he came to death when he was fighting the Green Goblin. It wasn't even the death that disturbed him. It was the sorrow that his Aunt May would have felt. He knew that she was a strong woman, though. She was going to be there for him until the day she would die. God bless Aunt May. Peter would be there for her too.

  
  


Peter went straight to bed that night. Fighting superpowerful maniacs really took it out of him. Then it hit him. It was only Monday. There was a whole week of school that he would have to endure. Why did school lose its appeal? Peter needed a break. But Spider-Men don't get breaks.

  
  


The time had almost come. Norman Osborne stood in front of twenty armed men. Each of them had their eyes on him. Jordan stood to his right and Stillwell was at his left. Something was about to go down. Osborne stood behind a podium and addressed his audience.

  
  


"You are the best of the best. Each of you are here for one soul reason. To make an impression. The Jade Syndicate has not been taken seriously. You have been viewed as nothing but terrorists. But you are much more than that. You are warriors! You are all part of an elite team! Together, we will take this city! We will take the underworld! And soon, very soon, we will take the world itself! You will all prove yourselves to be worthy! You see, the police could not stop you. Why, even the federal government couldn't stop you! But there's one person who is a worthy adversary. I think you all know who that is. Spider-Man is our greatest foe. He is the only one worthy of being called my greatest foe. Spider-Man is also a warrior. Now, you will be given the greatest mission of your lives. Your mission: to kill Spider-Man! However, you will not be the ones to destroy him. I will strike him down myself! Now, listen very carefully. Pay close attention, and soon we will be rid of Spider-Man forever!"

  
  


There was no school the next day. In fact, there probably wouldn't be school for about a week. The wall in the classroom had to be rebuilt. As for the science lab, it had to be totally redone. Peter only felt partially responsible for all the damage, but he always felt better once he thought about it. After all, he didn't have to go to school.

  
  


Peter felt that he should surprise Gwen by visiting her. She seemed like she needed some company, and Peter couldn't really go talk to Harry. He thought about Gwen and for a moment felt a weird feeling in his heart. It wasn't quite something he could explain, but it was a pleasant feeling. It was odd how he had this feeling whenever he thought about Gwen. He felt like he should say something to her, but then he remembered something. Gwen despised Spider-Man. Why, he had no idea, but she definitely disliked him. The only way for Peter to be with Gwen is if he were to retire Spider-Man. But, he still had the Jade Syndicate to handle. Not to mention the Green Goblin. Was Peter really prepared to give up being Spider-Man?

Peter walked a few blocks to Gwen's house. It was such a nice day that he didn't see a point in putting on the costume and swinging to her house. It was the greatest day of his life. Everything seemed perfect. And the decision was made. Peter knew what he had to do. This was the way things would be.

  
  


It was 3 P.M. when Peter arrived at Gwen's house. He rang the doorbell and stood waiting. The door opened, and out came Gwen. She smiled at Peter and hugged him, which surprised him a little. "You're a hero, you know that?" she asked. He was worried for a second. Could she know that he was Spider-Man? He just decided to play it cool.

  
  


"Um... why do you say that?" asked Peter.

  
  


"You saved my father's life, Peter. You did a lot more than Spider-Man," said Gwen.

  
  


"Well, I don't know about that. I mean, Spider-Man did fight the Green Goblin and save that girl's life."

  
  


"All Spider-Man did was blow up the science lab."

  
  


"Yeah, I guess he's a screwup..."

  
  


"So, what brings you here?"

  
  


"Well, Gwen, I was wondering if you needed someone to talk to."

  
  


"That's sweet, Peter. But I'm fine."

  
  


"That's not the only reason I came. There's something I have to tell you."

  
  


"What's that?"

  
  


"I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Thinking about life choices. At first I was real confused, but now I think I know what this feeling is."

  
  


"Peter, I don't get it."

  
  


"Gwen, I..."

  
  


"Come on. We're friends. You can tell me anything. You know that."

  
  


"I love you Gwen."

  
  


Gwen was at a loss for words. Peter could barely believe he heard the words come out of his own mouth. He felt slightly better that he said it, but he needed to know if the feeling was mutual. This was tougher than any fight that Spider-Man could possibly have. 

Gwen started to speak, but then she hesitated. She still couldn't believe what Peter said to her. He felt so sincere when he said it. It was obvious that he was serious. Gwen cleared her throat and spoke.

  
  


"I love you too."

  
  


Peter was more shocked than Gwen was. Did she just say 'I love you too'? So, the feeling was mutual? A million questions ran through his head and made him confused. So, what would Spider-Man do? No, that was no good. What would Uncle Ben do? Peter only took a second to think about it. Then, without hesitation, he held Gwen close to him and kissed her. His confidence astonished even him. Even though he had kissed Gwen before, this was something special. This was different. It made sense though. After all, it was love. Thanks, Uncle Ben, he thought. You always were a lady killer.

  
  


There kiss broke after a minute, but the embrace was still strong. Gwen kissed Peter once more and held him. "What are you doing tomorrow?" she asked. Peter held her tighter and smiled at her.

  
  


"Nothing much. My aunt is visiting her friend, so I'll be home alone tomorrow night," he said.

  
  


"Maybe I could come over tomorrow."

  
  


"Yeah, that would be cool."

  
  


"Then I'll see you tomorrow. Seven tomorrow night?"

  
  


"Yeah, that's good."

  
  


"Alright. Bye Peter." 

  
  


Gwen kissed Peter once more before going back into the house. Peter stood in the doorway stunned for a second. He was happy, there was no doubt about that, but he was also sad. He and Gwen were together, but that meant that his responsibilities as Spider-Man would have to be forgotten. This was his decision. Peter Parker was no longer Spider-Man.

  
  


The plan was going well. Once Spider-Man was beaten, the world would know how truly powerful the Green Goblin was. But simply beating Spider-Man in a fight wasn't good enough for Norman Osborne. He already did that. The first time they met, the fight was his. The second time they met, they had reached a stalemate. This time, Spider-Man would not only be beaten and humiliated, but he would the lose the most important thing in his life. Then, and only then, would the Green Goblin be able to claim his victory. After beating Spider-Man, he would take this city. Eventually, the world would fall before him, but at the moment that was unrealistic. At the moment. The time was fast approaching. In one day, he would prove once and for all that he was the rightful ruler of the world. In one day, Spider-Man would be dead. In one day, New York would belong to the Green Goblin.

The next day, Peter was incredibly happy. He stayed home all day long, and he felt relieved that he wouldn't have to put on the costume and do the superhero thing. All he had to do is relax. Yeah, he had superpowers and stuff like that, but besides from that he was a normal teenager. A teenager in love. His life was finally getting easier.

  
  


Peter spent most of the day in bed. He only left his room to bathe, eat, and use the bathroom, and he was never out of the room for longer than half an hour. He considered studying to pass the time, but why waste time doing that? Peter was a changed man. Studying was normally fun for him, but not now. 

  
  


Peter glanced at his clock: 6:08. The day was almost over already. He had to get ready. Peter forced himself out of the bed and went straight to the shower. It only took ten minutes before he was out of the shower and getting dressed. His spider powers helped him move a little bit faster. Soon, he was washed, dressed, and refreshed. He glanced back at the clock: 6:34. Not bad.

  
  


Meanwhile, Aunt May was in her room getting ready to leave. She had her TV on while she prepared herself. She was watching some soap opera, but it was interrupted by a special bulletin. There was some news about the Daily Bugle. "Peter, don't you work at the Daily Bugle?" she asked. Peter entered the room.

  
  


"Yes, Aunt May. Why do you ask?" asked Peter.

  
  


May motioned toward the TV. Peter stared at the screen with both shock and horror. A reporter stood in front of the Daily Bugle and spoke into his microphone.

  
  


_We are reporting to you live from the building of the Daily Bugle in downtown Manhattan. Sources speculate that what seems to be a hostage situation is in progress. It is rumored that the terrorist group known as the Jade Syndicate have sealed off all the exits and are demanding_ _that Spider-Man himself meet them in the building. There is no doubt in this reporter's mind that Spider-Man is indeed a member of this terrorist organization. _

  
  


_Wait a moment, folks... I am receiving information as we speak. It has been confirmed that Editor-In-Chief J. Jonah Jamison is among the hostages present. And... wait, what's this? As you can see right now, one of the terrorists has stepped onto the roof. I can't tell who's with him, but I am pretty sure that's one of the hostages. Mike, get a closeup if you can._

  
  


__The cameraman zoomed in and caught a glimpse of a man in riot gear. He stood next to a young woman who was obviously a hostage. Another terrorist stood behind her with a rifle to her back. The first man stood with a pistol in one hand and a megaphone in another. He cleared his throat, stepped forward, and got ready to make his announcement. Before he could start, he looked around and noticed all the policemen that were below him. There was probably a sniper in the crowd. He glanced back to his partner, who nodded to him. The man cleared his throat again and got ready.

  
  


"New York City," he started. "We are the Jade Syndicate. You may have heard of us before. In case you haven't noticed, we are slowly but surely taking this city. In order to do so, certain measures must be taken. This is one of those measures. Before I go on, I would like to make it known that my partner will immediately kill this young lady if I'm harmed. Now, allow me to get on to what's really important. Spider-Man, if you're watching this, I don't think I have to tell you that we won't hesitate to kill each and every single person in this building. All we want is a meeting with you. All you have to do is show up. We have an ultimatum for you, Spider-Man. If you do not show up in thirty minutes, we will kill one of our hostages. Every five minutes after that, we will kill another hostage until you show up. If you don't arrive thirty minutes after that, we will detonate a bomb that is concealed somewhere in this building. Hurry up, Spider-Man. The clock is ticking."

  
  


"_There you have it. The Jade Syndicate have made their demands clear. Spider-Man is to arrive within half an hour. If he fails to do so, the terrorists will begin to kill their hostages one by one. Will Spider-Man meet the terrorists? Only time will tell. We will remain here to give you the answers. Stay tuned."_

  
  


__Peter had no idea what to do now. He decided that Spider-Man would be no more, but if he didn't do something, everyone in the Daily Bugle would be killed. He would have to be Spider-Man again, but he made the promise to himself that he would no longer be Spider-Man. Yet another difficult decision for Peter Parker. What made things worse is that Gwen was supposed to come over in half an hour. What was he going to do?

  
  


"Um.. Aunt May, I think Ms. Watson is waiting for you," said Peter.

  
  


"I suppose you're right, dear. I hope she's watching this," said May.

  
  


"She probably is."

  
  


"Well, goodbye, Peter. If anything happens, be sure to let me know."

  
  


"Okay, Aunt May."

  
  


Peter watched May go, then he ran to his room. He reached under the bed and pulled out the Spider-Man costume. Would he really have to wear it again? And what about Gwen? Was saving those people more important than her? Peter thought for a moment. Then, he made his decision. This was Spider-Man's last mission.

  
  


Spider-Man made it down to the Daily Bugle in record time. There was still twenty minutes left. So he had a little bit of time to sneak in and save the hostages. Of course, there was no way to tell how many people he would have to fight, so his best bet would be to open the doors for the police and let them do their job. Then, he would save whoever he could and find the bomb. The hardest part would be defusing the bomb, but he would worry about that when the time came.

  
  


Spider-Man climbed the building and let himself in through a bathroom window. Once he was inside, he walked toward the bathroom door. There were no signs of danger, so he walked out of the room. As he walked down a hallway, his Spider-Sense began to tingle. In a second, he jumped to the ceiling and held it. Two men walked into the hallway.

  
  


"You think he'll show?" asked one man.

  
  


"Kinda hard to tell," answered the other.

  
  


"So, where's that bomb, anyway?"

  
  


"In Jamison's office. I hope we don't have to use it. I'm not trying to blow myself up."

  
  


"Amen to that. Hey, where are the hostages?"

  
  


"They rounded them up in the lobby."

  
  


Spider-Man had a choice. He could either go straight for the bomb, or he could save the hostages. If they were all in one place, he could save them all. He decided to go after the hostages first. 

  
  


Norman Osborne sat in a large leather chair and took another sip of his wine. This was the night, so why not celebrate a little? He turned to Jordan, who was standing behind him. "What time is it?" asked Osborne.

  
  


"6: 48, Mr. Osborne," said Jordan.

  
  


"... It's time." Osborne stood up, pulled on his green mask, and slid his red lenses into place. He shed a large overcoat to reveal his clothing. He wore a large purple armored chest plate, a pair of black boots, and a purple hood. His dark purple pants extended to his calves and stopped two inches from the boots. His arms were covered with shiny green armored sleeves, and he wore two purple gloves. Now he was ready. He stood in front of Jordan and grinned an evil smile. "It is time to take New York."

  
  


Taking out those two guys was easy. They never saw the web nets coming. Now, Spider-Man had to make it to the lobby. He crawled on the ceiling and went down the staircase. After awhile, he was in the lobby of the Daily Bugle. Several people were huddled into the center of the room, and Jamison was seated in a chair at the front desk. This was going to be difficult. There were twenty of these guys, who were all heavily armed. Then there was Spider-Man, who had webs. Webs versus rifles. Not to mention a bunch of hostages. And Spider-Man had to keep them out of harm's way. Even if he were to defend them, how would he defend himself? This literally could be Spider-Man's last mission. The odds were all against him. Webs versus rifles? This was going to be a long evening for Spider-Man.

  
  
  
  


There was only one option that made sense: beat them up really, really fast. That was the only thing he could do. The deadline was in eight minutes. Spider-Man took out five terrorists with five well-aimed web shots. Good, only fifteen more. Before everyone could react, Spider-Man dropped from the ceiling and slammed his feet into two men's backs, pinning them to the ground. Thirteen more. Now, their guns were aimed at him. He had to get their attention away from the hostages. Spider-Man made a huge jump above a group of people while bullets flew at him. He somersaulted, extended his legs, bounced off the heads of two more men, flipped again, grabbed two men by their necks, slammed them into a wall, and landed. Nine more. Now a hail of bullets came flying his way. He jumped straight up, caught one man with a webline, and slammed him into the man next to him. Seven more. Two men threw down their rifles and decided to take him out up close and personal. One of them pulled a knife on Spider-Man and jabbed toward his face. His head moved a half inch and dodged the blade. The other man tried to punch him in his stomach. He jumped above the man's fist a shot a web at the ceiling. Then he yanked on it, pulling him up. As he was going up, he spread his legs to each side and kicked both men in the temple. Five more. The remaining five fired at the ceiling. Spider-Man scurried across the ceiling like a true spider, but he wasn't going to be able to dodge those bullets forever. He dropped from the ceiling and started swinging. To hell with spider powers. This was just a brawl. He kept his fists flying as he went down. He punched again. And again. And again and again until he was the only one standing. 

  
  


Spider-Man stood panting above the fallen terrorists. He was too tired to move. It seemed logical to just leave, but then he remembered the bomb. His thoughts were interrupted when an old man started screaming in his face.

  
  


"You web-headed foul-up!" he heard Jamison say.

  
  


"Oh, here we go..." said Spider-Man.

  
  


"Have you forgotten that there is a bomb in this building, web-head? Instead of playing hero, you should have been finding that bomb! Now, we're all going to die because of you!"

  
  


"Uh huh."

  
  


"Why couldn't you let the cops do their job?"

  
  


"Okay."

  
  


"Are you listening to me? I'll have you arrested, do you hear me?"

  
  


"What's up?"

  
  


"What's up? Why you..." Jamison couldn't say a thing. A web held his mouth shut.

  
  


"Shut... Nah, too cliche."

  
  


Spider-Man noticed that one of the hostages had opened the front door. That was good. The police could pick up the pieces and catch anyone else that was in the building. It was his job to find the bomb. Spider-Man ran up the stairs to Jamison's office. Once he entered the office, he looked around, but he didn't see any bomb. He searched a closet, a mini refrigerator, and under Jamison's desk, but there was nothing. He started to lose hope. It seemed like he had checked everywhere. But he was wrong. He noticed that Jamison's coat was hanging on a rack. He felt inside the pockets, and sure enough, there was the bomb. Spider-Man held up the bomb and examined it. Something wasn't right about it. Why didn't it alert his Spider-Sense? And why was it so small? Spider-Man shook it a little, and then, reluctantly, he opened it up. The bomb was completely hollow. In fact, it wasn't a bomb at all. Just a hollow piece of metal. Why would they do that? Somebody set him up, but who?

  
  


Now, he was pissed off. Someone wasted his time by placing a fake bomb in the Daily Bugle and endangering all of those lives. If the Jade Syndicate was going to resort to pranks, they wouldn't even deserve to call themselves terrorists. This was exactly why Peter wanted to quit being Spider-Man.

  
  


Spider-Man was about to leave, but he stopped when he noticed something. There was a videotape in the pocket of Jamison's coat. A label on it read, "For My Greatest Foe". It seemed kind of odd, but it may explain a few things, so Spider-Man decided to investigate. He popped the tape into a VCR and waited. A few seconds later, he saw Norman Osborne on the screen. "What the hell is this?"

  
  


_Greetings, Spider-Man. If you are watching this, then I trust that you have found my bomb. I apologize_ _for the crude means of contacting you, but I rather expect that a written invitation would have been rejected. If you recall, I told you that my goal is to achieve more power. What I did not tell you is that I would do anything, and I do mean anything, to achieve that power. You see, at the moment, there are two very large obstacles in my way. One is Captain George Stacy. The other is yourself. Although I could easily kill the both of you, that would not give me the satisfaction of taking everything away from you both. You are a bright young man, Spider-Man. I think you can figure this out. What is the one way that I could destroy you both without actually harming you? It really is quite simple. Once you have figured this out, meet me at the Brooklyn_ _Bridge. Come alone. And do try to hurry. Our guest of honor will be waiting. I'll see you at the Brooklyn Bridge, my friend._

  
  


__The tape cut off, and Spider-Man was left with his thoughts. He had to figure this out. How could the Goblin destroy Spider-Man and Captain Stacy without actually harming them? What did he mean? Could he mean... "Gwen!" Spider-Man jumped out of the window and climbed to the roof immediately. He had to hurry to the Brooklyn Bridge. When the Goblin was talking about their "Guest of Honor", he was talking about Gwen. He was going to kill Gwen unless Spider-Man did something. He hurried to the roof and saw the two men and their hostage. He quickly fired two webs at them and swung from the building. There was no time to waste. The Green Goblin was going after the woman he loved. There was only one choice left: Spider-Man had to stop him tonight. And if it took every ounce of strength in his body, that's what he was going to do.

Spider-Man moved as fast as he could. He pushed himself to the limit of his speed, then he went beyond it. Never had he moved so fast in his life. He had to move faster, though. Gwen's life depended on it. His swinging and climbing came so naturally that he was able to move as if he actually were a spider. The trip seemed to take forever, but it was actually pretty quick. Finally, he arrived at the Brooklyn Bridge.

  
  


The bridge was longer than it usually seemed. It would take too long for Spider-Man to move along the entire bridge while searching for Gwen. His best bet was too climb to the top of the bridge and trust his Spider-Sense. He climbed one of the towers of the bridge. This gave him a much better view of the bridge. Even still, he didn't see Gwen anywhere. His Spider-Sense wasn't even tingling. He started to swing from tower to tower, but there was no sign of Gwen. After the tenth tower, he stopped and looked around. His ears filled with the sound of passing cars and honking horns. Above all the sounds, he swore he could have heard someone crying. He started to swing in the direction of the sound, and it became louder as he came closer. Five towers later, he finally saw Gwen. "Gwen, don't move! I'll be right there!"

  
  


"Stay away from me!" said Gwen.

  
  


"Look, I'm here to help you, but you have to trust me!" said Spider-Man.

  
  


"... You won't hurt me?"

  
  


"Of course not. Give me your hand."

  
  


Gwen was hesitant at first. But, considering the options, it was best to trust him. She extended her hand slowly, and Spider-Man held it. She stood up and allowed him to lead her to the edge. "Now hold on." Spider-Man prepared to fire a web and start swinging, but he stopped suddenly. "Spider-Sense... tingling!" He held Gwen close to him and looked around. Something was wrong. "Stay close, Gwen. Don't move." His Spider-Sense flared even more wildly. For some reason, he had to move. With Gwen in his arms, he jumped to the side just in time to dodge a hail of bullets. The Wing Bomber hovered above him. The Green Goblin stood on top of it with a wide grin on his face. 

  
  


"Well, isn't this dramatic? The hero has come to his lady's side prepared to slay the villain! How utterly poetic!" said the Goblin.

  
  


"You! You think this is some kind of game?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"I suppose you're a tad bit upset. I can understand that, I really can. I would be upset if the love of my life were abducted by a maniac."

  
  


"What are you talking about?" asked Gwen.

  
  


"You mean you haven't told her yet, Spider-Man?" asked the Green Goblin.

  
  


"Told me what?" asked Gwen.

  
  


"Shut up, Goblin!" said Spider-Man.

  
  


"I can't believe this! So you haven't told her? This is very interesting. I mean, this is the woman you love, and you couldn't tell her your greatest secret?" asked the Goblin.

  
  


"There's nothing to tell," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"You are a fool, Spider-Man. First, you allowed me to distract you with something as simple as a hostage situation, then you left your woman open to attack, and all the while you were trying to live two lives?"

  
  


"I said shut up!"

  
  


"Now, everything that you have been fighting for will be lost. And then, you will lose this woman, just like how you lost your dear uncle."

  
  


"Just shut up!"

  
  


"What do you mean?" asked Gwen. "What... Peter?"

  
  


Spider-Man hung his head. The time had come to be totally honest with Gwen. He hesitated, then he reached up and removed his mask. His face was revealed. "Gwen, I'm sorry. I should have let you know..."

  
  


"When were you going to tell me? The honeymoon?" asked Gwen.

  
  


"Gwen, look, I had to do this. It's my responsibility," said Peter.

  
  


"You knew how I felt about Spider-Man! And now I find out that you actually _are _Spider-Man!"

  
  


"Look, when my Uncle Ben died, I knew that it was my responsibility to use my powers for the benefit of those around me. But it was hard to talk to you about it."

  
  


"Just tell me how it happened. How did you get these powers?"

  
  


"A freak accident. A spider bit me at the Neogenics Exhibit. Something happened to it, though. It was radioactive or something."

  
  


"Peter... if this is what you need to do, then I'm behind you."

  
  


"See, this is why I love you."

  
  


"How sweet. But, have you forgotten? You are both going to die!" said the Green Goblin.

  
  


Peter pulled his mask on and turned to the Goblin. He glanced over his shoulder at Gwen. "Stay back. This will be over quickly." Gwen nodded and stepped back. Spider-Man turned to the Green Goblin. "This ends tonight, Goblin."

  
  


"I agree, Spider-Man! One of us will die tonight!" said the Goblin.

  
  


The Green Goblin flew higher into the air. He aimed his finger at Spider-Man and fired a laser. Spider-Man moved to the side before it could even come near him. He jumped as high as he could, shot a webline, and caught the Wing Bomber. He held on tight as it flew around in a series of twists, turns, and circles. The Goblin tried to shake him off, but Spider-Man's grip on the webline was too tight to shake. The Goblin turned around and fired two more lasers. Spider-Man shifted his momentum to the right and watched both lasers fly toward the river below. Two more lasers came his way, and he moved his body to the left. Slowly he began to climb the webline while still moving his body out of the way of the lasers. The Goblin made a sharp turn and slammed Spider-Man into the side of one of the towers. Spider-Man held on to the tower with one hand, but he kept his grip on the webline with the other hand. The Goblin turned to Spider-Man, held up a small remote, and pressed a button on it. Two machine gun turrets emerged from the front of his glider. He pressed the button again, and a swarm of bullets flew toward the tower. Spider-Man dropped a few feet so that the bullets were above him, then he swung on the webline that was attached to the glider. He swung, flipped, and ended up behind the Goblin. While in midair, he flipped again and slammed both feet into the Goblin's back. The Goblin flew off of the glider and landed on top of the tower. As for Spider-Man, he landed on the Wing Bomber, bounced, backflipped, and landed above the Goblin on top of the tower.

  
  


"You knew you were destined to lose, Goblin," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"You're wrong. The fight is not yet over!" said the Goblin.

  
  


The Goblin clenched his fist and slowly stood up. With all of his strength, he punched Spider-Man in the groin with an uppercut. Spider-Man dropped and curled into a ball. The Goblin stood up, kicked Spider-Man in the ribs, and held up the remote. He pressed another button on it, and the Wing Bomber came to him. He stepped on top of it and looked down at Spider-Man. "I suppose I should use my trump card now." The Green Goblin flew away, leaving Spider-Man alone on top of the tower.

  
  


Spider-Man rose to his feet after a few seconds. Everything was spinning. It was as if he were drunk. But he had to focus. He noticed a vapor trail in the sky. It had to be the Wing Bomber. Spider-Man descended the tower slightly, shot a web to another tower, and started following the vapor trail. It was hard to concentrate on what he was doing, though. The Goblin put everything he had into that punch. Thanks, Goblin, he thought. Now Gwen and I can't have kids.

  
  


Spider-Man was nearly at the end of the vapor trail. The trail was fairly long. It seemed to span over familiar ground. Then he realized where he was. The vapor trail led back to the tower that Gwen was on. The Green Goblin was going after Gwen.

Spider-Man finally caught up to the Goblin. He made a big swing so that he was above the Wing Bomber at the tip of his swing, then he let go of the web and let himself fall toward the glider. He landed on the Goblin's shoulders and grabbed his neck. The Goblin struggled to get Spider-Man off of him.

  
  


"Let go of me, you fool! The glider can't support us both!" said the Goblin.

  
  


"Then go on Weight Watchers or something!" said Spider-Man.

  
  


"This is no time for jokes! You will kill us both!"

  
  


"You're not trying to scare me, are you?"

  
  


The Wing Bomber plummeted toward the river. The Goblin grabbed Spider-Man and threw him off of the glider. As he fell, Spider-Man caught the glider with a web and pulled himself back up. He stood in front of the Goblin and punched him in the face. The Goblin hit him back with a similar punch. They grabbed each other by the throat and started hitting each other in the ribs. The Goblin tightened his grip on Spider-Man's throat and held it with both hands. "So you want to die, do you? Then so be it!" The Goblin made his grip even tighter than before. The glider was coming closer and closer to the river. Time was running out. "Die!" yelled the Goblin.

  
  


"You first," said Spider-Man.

  
  


Spider-Man rocked the Goblin's ribs with repeated punches. Slowly, the Goblin's grip on his throat loosened. He was finally able to free himself. Spider-Man clenched his fist, crouched, and then jumped straight up with a hard uppercut to the Goblin's jaw. Then, while in midair, he grabbed the tower with a web, yanked on it, and pulled himself toward the tower. He slammed into it with a loud thud. The shock of hitting the tower so hard almost knocked him out, but he was able to stay conscious. Spider-Man looked down, and he caught a glimpse of the Green Goblin and the Wing Bomber falling into the river.

  
  


Spider-Man climbed to the top of the tower. Once he was on top, he collapsed and took a deep breath. Gwen ran to him and shook him. He was breathing heavily. Gwen could tell that he was struggling for breath. She slowly pulled his mask off and turned him over. He was conscious, but his eyes were closed and his heart was barely beating. Gwen pushed her blonde hair out of her face and leaned forward. She was going to give him mouth to mouth resuscitation, but she had a feeling that it wouldn't work. She breathed into him ten times, but nothing happened. Gwen drew her head back, took a deep breath, and breathed into him once more. Peter's body jerked, he coughed, and finally he opened his eyes. He looked up at Gwen and smiled.

  
  


"Am I dead? I think I see an angel," said Peter.

  
  


"That was a corny line. And you have a lot of explaining to do," said Gwen.

  
  


Peter sat up and held his throat. There weren't any bruises. He would live. That is, if Gwen didn't kill him first. She stood up, crossed her arms, and glared at him. Slowly Peter stood up and turned to her. "Thanks, Gwen." Gwen didn't say anything back. "What's wrong?"

  
  


"I'm still trying to get over this whole Spider-Man thing," said Gwen.

  
  


"Gwen, let me tell you why I do what I do," said Peter.

  
  


"Fine. Go ahead."

  
  


"When I got these powers, I only used them for my own ambitions. I tried to get rich with these powers, and I felt like I was on top of the world. But then, my Uncle Ben was killed, and it was all my fault. I could have stopped the guy that killed him, but I was too worried about myself to do it. So then... he murdered my uncle. Nothing was as important as catching him and bringing him to justice. When my uncle died, it taught me that having these powers gives me a responsibility. My uncle always taught me one lesson. With great power comes great responsibility. That's why I do what I do."

  
  


"Peter, your uncle meant a lot to you, didn't he?"

  
  


"Yeah. He was the only father I really had."

  
  


"Do you mind if I ask what happened to your dad?"

  
  


"... My parents both died in a plane crash. I was only an infant when it happened."

  
  


"I'm sorry."

  
  


"Don't be. There's something I have to tell you, Gwen."

  
  


"What's that?"

  
  


"I've decided to give up being Spider-Man."

  
  


"Really? You're going to stop?"

  
  


"Yes. I love you that much. Spider-Man is dead."

  
  


"That, at least, is true!" said an unseen person.

  
  


Peter and Gwen looked around, but they saw nobody. Then, they heard some kind of small engine. Slowly, very slowly, they saw somebody rising to meet them. With his eyes glowing bright red and his teeth clenched, the Green Goblin rose above Gwen and Peter and lit a pumpkin grenade. 

  
  


"How could he have survived that?" asked Peter.

  
  


"What do we do?" asked Gwen.

  
  


"_You _don't do anything," said Peter as he pulled on his mask. "_I _will stop him myself."

  
  


The Green Goblin didn't say a thing. He just glared at Spider-Man and Gwen. Suddenly, the grenade flew from his hand and toward the tower. Spider-Man quickly grabbed Gwen and swung to another tower just as the grenade destroyed the other. "I suppose you are wondering why these grenades are still working. Well, thanks to the plastique element in them, their insides are well protected from outside substances such as water." The Goblin flew to Spider-Man and Gwen and descended to them. "I also suppose you are wondering how I survived. Well, I suppose I could just say that it was sheer fortitude." He stepped off of the glider and walked to Spider-Man. "And I suppose you're wondering what I plan to do to you. Well..." The Goblin punched Spider-Man with all of his strength and knocked him down. Then he walked to Gwen, grabbed her by the throat, and lifted her. "Why I have hesitated to kill you is beyond me." 

  
  


The Goblin felt someone's foot hit his back. He dropped Gwen, who fell directly in Spider-Man's arms. The Goblin stumbled forward and turned to Spider-Man. Spider-Man set Gwen down behind him. The Green Goblin and Spider-Man stared at each other for a moment, then the Goblin burst into laughter. Spider-Man was confused. "What's so funny?"

  
  


"You really do think that you can save her! And you think that you can defeat me!" said the Goblin.

  
  


"No, I know that I can beat you," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"Don't delude yourself, Spider-Man! Your woman is doomed!"

  
  


"What? Keep her out of this!"

  
  


The Green Goblin jumped onto the Wing Bomber and flew above Spider-Man. "She's doomed! Do you hear me? Doomed! And so are you!" The Goblin circled in the sky above Spider-Man. Then, in one motion, he flew down, circled around Spider-Man, and slammed the tip of the Wing Bomber into Gwen's chin. The shot sent her flying over the edge of the tower and toward the river. Spider-Man ran to the edge and looked down.

  
  


"Gwen! No!"

  
  


His instincts kicked in. Spider-Man quickly held his arm over the edge of the tower and fired a webline at Gwen. The web ran down the tower and caught Gwen's ankle. She continued to fall, but only for a couple of seconds. Then, her descent stopped. She stopped falling, but something was wrong. There was a loud sound that rang in Spider-Man's ears.

  
  


Snap!

It was the most sickening sound he had ever heard. A loud snap that echoed in his ears. A sound he would never forget. It continued to ring in his ears until he was able to gather himself and pull Gwen back up. Slowly, Spider-Man pulled on the web. He pulled for a few seconds, and eventually Gwen was laying in his arms. He shook her, but she didn't move or say anything. "Gwen? Gwen, speak to me!" He shook her harder, but she was still. "Gwen, come on! Wake up!" His heart started to beat faster. It was the same feeling he had just before Uncle Ben died. The feeling that he was about to lose someone dear. But he wouldn't accept that. He would never let Gwen die. He was Spider-Man. Spider-Man could do something. Spider-Man pulled his mask up slightly so that his mouth was exposed, then he leaned over and started to breathe into Gwen. He took a deep breath, paused, and did it again. Nothing. He drew his head back again, inhaled, and did it once again. Still nothing. He was going to do it again, but he saw no point. He pulled his mask back on, placed his fingers on her neck, and felt for a pulse. He moved his fingers along her neck while feeling for the pulse. At one point he felt a something odd and heard a clicking sound. Slowly, he lifted Gwen's head and noticed a small yet noticeable protrusion on her neck. 

  
  


"Her... her neck is broken..."

  
  


Spider-Man placed his ear to Gwen's chest and listened. There was no sound whatsoever. He held Gwen close to him and squeezed. Spider-Man could feel the tears beneath his mask. This can't be happening, he thought. He can't lose somebody else. He already lost his parents and Uncle Ben, and now he was losing Gwen. He wondered to himself: Why does this always happen to me? Even if I am Spider-Man, it just brings more sorrow and more pain. She was innocent. She had nothing to do with any of this. He couldn't even save her. It wasn't the shot to her chin that killed her. It wasn't the shock from falling off of the bridge that killed her. It was Spider-Man. When he caught her with the web, her body jerked at the end of the fall. Her neck snapped because he made a stupid mistake. And now she was dead. And it was his fault.

  
  


"No..." said Spider-Man with tear-filled eyes. "I didn't kill her... You did!" He pointed toward the Green Goblin.

  
  


"Don't lie to yourself! I'm not the one that made her neck snap! You killed her, Spider-Man! You are the murderer!" said the Green Goblin.

  
  


"You... you killed the woman I love." Spider-Man stood up with Gwen in his arms. "You... are going to die..."

  
  


"Ha! You could never kill me! Do you know why? Because you lack the killer instinct! Although, I must say, killing your woman is a good start at gaining it!"

  
  


Suddenly, there was a bright light. Above everyone was a police helicopter. The Goblin looked up at it, then back at Spider-Man. "Until next time, Spider-Man! Police folk just aren't my kind of folk!" The Goblin flew into the air and then away. Spider-Man was left with Gwen in his arms and a helicopter coming toward him. He saw Captain Stacy climbing down a rope ladder that was dropped from the chopper. Captain Stacy started to walk toward him. He couldn't tell who the girl in Spider-Man's arms was. But he would find out soon.

"Who is that with you?" asked Captain Stacy. Spider-Man didn't say anything back. "Answer me!" Captain Stacy walked forward a little bit. With each step he took, the girl became more visible. Spider-Man placed the girl in the captain's arms. Captain Stacy looked down at the girl's face. "Gwen?" He looked at Spider-Man, who slowly nodded to him. Captain Stacy battled back tears. He kissed Gwen on the forehead, then he turned to the chopper. "Get a body bag out here!" he yelled. Two men came down the ladder with a body bag. Captain Stacy lowered her into the bag and watched as they zipped it up. Both of the men looked up at Stacy. He waved them away and turned to Spider-Man. "I want answers."

  
  


"The Green Goblin... Osborne. He killed her," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"... That's my little girl. She's gone..."

  
  


"I'm sorry..."

  
  


"For some reason, I'm going to do this by the book. Osborne will be arrested for this... then I'll see that they give his ass the death penalty."

  
  


"I know. He will be stopped. But I need your help."

  
  


"You won't have anything to do with this. You're lucky I don't have you arrested."

  
  


"I have to stop him. I'm going to do it with or without your help."

  
  


"If you go near him, you'll be arrested on the spot."

  
  


"Look, I beat twenty armed men on my own tonight. And he's stronger than me. You think you can beat him? And don't forget that those guys I fought tonight work for him. He'll crush you. Now, you can do one of two things: You can help me find him and end it tonight, or you can arrest me and never find him. It's your choice."

  
  


"... Your right."

  
  


"Now where's the one place that he would likely run to?"

  
  


"I think... There's a warehouse two blocks away from the Acme Warehouse. It's on 7th Street. You know the place?"

  
  


"Yeah, I know it... I'll never forget it..."

  
  


"Good. That's his number one warehouse. He might hide there. I'm heading down there myself. What do you plan to do, anyway?"

  
  


"I don't know. Let me just say this. I won't be responsible for my actions."

  
  


The trip seemed fairly short. It seemed as though something was leading Spider-Man to the warehouse. He didn't have to think about what directions he had to take. He already knew how to get there. Only one thought went through his head while he moved: bring the Goblin to justice. But he didn't mean to bring him to the police.

  
  


Spider-Man was only a block away from the warehouse. He moved across the New York skyline with swiftness and easily landed atop the building. There wasn't much around. He could see one building on each side as well as a few poles and signs. Everything else was hidden by shadows. It was dark now, so seeing what was around was pretty tough. Spider-Man finally noticed a wall that stuck out of the roof. There was a door on this wall that led into the warehouse. He tried to turn the knob on the door, but it wouldn't turn. He applied a little bit of pressure and crushed the knob into powder, then he allowed himself into the warehouse.

  
  


It was even darker inside the warehouse. Spider-Man didn't want to risk turning on the lights, so he walked on and trusted his Spider-Sense to guide him. Swiftly, yet cautiously, he moved throughout the building. In twenty seconds, he covered four floors, but there was nothing. Then, five floors down, he entered a large, brightly lit room. There were boxes all around the room and two armed men leaning against them. Spider-Man put his back to the wall, peeked around the corner, and listened.

  
  


"So, why are we here again?" asked one man.

  
  


"Because he said that Spider-Man would be here. He wants us to be ready," said the other man.

  
  


"Oh yeah. But doesn't he want to kill the bug himself?"

  
  


"Yeah, he does."

  
  


"So why the hell are we here?"

  
  


"Hey, I don't question the guy. I just follow orders. You'd best do the same."

  
  


"This better be worth it. Hey, where is the boss anyway?"

  
  


"I hear he's in the basement."

  
  


That was all he needed to hear. Spider-Man walked around the corner, caught one man with a web, pulled him, and slammed him head first into the wall behind him. The other man drew his weapon. Spider-Man snatched it with another web, twirled the web and rifle above his head, and smacked the man in the head with the rifle. The man dropped, and now Spider-Man was the only conscious person in the room. He walked across the room to another flight of steps and walked down. The next few floors were empty. It was eerily quiet. Then, as he descended the stairs, his surroundings became slightly brighter. There was a light at the bottom of the stairs. Slowly he moved down the stairs toward the room. Once he was in the room, he saw a man sitting in a chair a few feet away from him. He moved closer and recognized Professor Stillwell.

"What are you doing here?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


Stillwell jumped out of his seat and turned around. "I didn't do anything! Don't kill me! I'll cooperate!" Stillwell dropped to his knees and sobbed.

  
  


"Stand up. What have you done, anyway? Are you working with Osborne? You better tell me now."

  
  


"I... I'm responsible for making the Green Goblin..."

  
  


"What? You better keep talking, Stillwell!"

  
  


"I created a strength serum called the Stillwell. It increases a person's strength. But it was still experimental. Osborne was near death, so he took the formula. It made him stronger, but it took a large toll on his sanity. My serum caused him to go insane. Now, he's created this Green Goblin, and he's planning to take over New York."

  
  


"Take over New York? How's he going to do that?"

  
  


"He thinks that killing you will prove his strength. Then, along with the Jade Syndicate, he was going to take the city hostage. I was an unwilling participant in his sadistic game."

  
  


"Alright, get out of here. You haven't done anything wrong, so go ahead."

  
  


"You know, If Osborne finds out I said something, he'll kill me."

  
  


"Don't worry, he won't find out." Spider-Man turned away from Stillwell.

  
  


"Right you are, Spider-Man." 

  
  


Spider-Man could feel his Spider-Sense flaring. In his mind's eye he saw Stillwell reaching for a gun. He quickly turned around and jumped above a bullet that came his way. His jump took him all the way to the ceiling. He held out his hands, grabbed Stillwell with two strands of webbing, attached the web to the ceiling, then secured it with another web. Now, he and Stillwell were hanging upside-down on the ceiling. Stillwell struggled and screamed at the top of his lungs.

  
  


"Let me down! I'm afraid of heights!" yelled Stillwell.

  
  


"Well, that's too bad, because that webbing won't dissolve for a whole hour," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"Please, let me go! I'm sorry!"

  
  


"Too bad, Stillwell. It's over for you. And your boss is going down too."

  
  


Spider-Man descended the next flight of steps to the next floor down. There was another light at the bottom of the stairs. He walked toward it slowly. Then, his Spider-Sense tingled again. There was someone in the room. Spider-Man jumped back to the ceiling and crawled into the room. There must have been fifty people in this room. Each of them were members of the Jade Syndicate, and each of them were armed. One man in the center of the room stood out. His armor was obviously more durable than the others, and he was more heavily armed. There were plenty of guns and knives strapped to his body, and he even had grenades on his belt. Must be their leader, Spider-Man thought.

  
  


Spider-Man continued to crawl above the terrorists' heads. If he was going to reach the basement and face the Goblin, he would have to find a way to get past them. He stopped and considered his options. There really didn't seem to be any choice but to fight them. His concentration was cut short though, because his Spider-Sense flared again. He dropped from the ceiling just in time to dodge a bullet. Once he landed, he looked up and noticed a man with a sniper rifle perched on top of some crates. He fired a web at the sniper and pulled him to the ground. The impact knocked the sniper out, but he was only one man. Now he had to take care of about forty-nine others. The man in the center of the room approached Spider-Man.

  
  


"I'm impressed, Spider-Man," said Jordan. "You were able to save the hostages at the Daily Bugle from my Jade Syndicate. But will you be able to save yourself?"

  
  


"So, you're the leader of this freak show?" asked Spider-Man.

  
  


"That's right."

  
  


"Well, I don't have time to play with you punks right now, so get out of my way."

  
  


"I don't think so. He didn't want us to kill you, but who really cares what Osborne wants?"

  
  


"Look, I'm in a real shitty mood right now, so move."

  
  


"My my my, the spider is upset!"

  
  


"Last warning..."

  
  


"What are you going to do, Spider-Man?"

  
  


Jordan hit the wall only half a second after Spider-Man punched him. Everybody who saw it became stunned for a moment. Then they all aimed their weapons at Spider-Man. He looked around and, for the first time since he became who he was, got the feeling that he was in a situation that just couldn't be won. There were fifty armed men surrounding him, each of them with the intent of killing him on the spot. He had to get past them and reach the Goblin, but how could he do it? One man who stood in front of him started to squeeze the trigger on his rifle. Spider-Man backed away slightly. His Spider-Sense buzzed lightly for only a second, then it was gone. He heard several loud crashes and noises. Then he heard a man yell "Freeze!"

The room was flooded with the largest swat team Spider-Man had ever seen. There may have been fifty members of the Jade Syndicate, but there were about eighty police officers in there as well. Spider-Man looked out of the window and noticed that there were even more officers. There were far too many officers to count. He looked up and saw Captain Stacy stepping on top of a crate, holding a pistol in one hand and a megaphone in the other. He shouted orders into the microphone while his officers rounded up terrorists. One officer walked up to Spider-Man and aimed his rifle at his head. "What about this creep, Captain? I say we put his red and blue butt into the cage with the other jackoffs," said the officer.

  
  


"No, let him go," said Captain Stacy.

  
  


"I'm surprised, Captain," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"You know why I'm letting you go, Spider-Man. Bring my daughter's killer to justice."

  
  


"...Yes, sir."

  
  


The officer lowered his rifle. Spider-Man looked up and saw Captain Stacy raise his hand. Captain Stacy raised his hand to his forehead and saluted Spider-Man. Spider-Man quickly raised his hand and saluted the captain, then he ran to a flight of steps at the opposite end of the room. 

  
  


Slowly Spider-Man descended the last flight of steps. He hesitated half way down and started to think. What if he were to be killed by the Green Goblin? What if other innocents were killed because of a mistake of his? Making a mistake cost Gwen her life. What if it happened again? He thought about turning around and leaving the building, but then something else came to mind. The last time he ignored his duties, Uncle Ben had been killed. That was reason enough to move on to the final battle. That, and because he owed it to Gwen.

  
  


Spider-Man made his way down the end of the steps and found himself in a large empty room. The only thing in the room was a huge door on the opposite side of the room. Spider-Man walked to the door and pressed an ear to it. He could hear the faint sound of someone's laughter. It was low, almost silent, as if it were a chuckle. He's laughing, Spider-Man thought. That bastard thinks this is funny. He would have to stop the Goblin's laughter once and for all. Spider-Man kicked the huge metal door and knocked it over. He moved into the room and saw a man standing in front of an altar with his hands raised. The Green Goblin laughed out loud and lifted his head.

  
  


"The goblin stood at the altar with memories of blood and gore. Then he heard a sound, as if a knock at his chamber door. The spider made a sound, which was the loudest sound, he swore. The sound was louder than any sound he ever heard before. The spider was enraged because the goblin killed his whore. Now his dreams were shattered and he felt emotions torn. His life was stripped of meaning and his sanity was worn. Now he stood brooding inside the goblin's chamber door. The goblin felt a pride that he had never felt before. He turned to the spider who had been knocking at his chamber door. Quoth the goblin: 'Nevermore'!" 

"No more riddles or poems or games, Goblin," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"I'm surprised, Spider-Man. I thought you would be swearing your revenge or announcing how much you hate me," said the Green Goblin.

  
  


"No, just know that it's going to end right now."

  
  


"You really are serious, aren't you?"

  
  


"Dead serious."

  
  


"Perhaps you are getting that killer instinct. The Peter Parker I know would be crying and moaning over his woman right now."

  
  


"Maybe I should be crying, but I can't cry right now. I guess losing the one closest to me has put things in perspective."

  
  


"You're growing up, my boy."

  
  


"Yeah, I guess I am. Look, can we please just stop talking and start killing each other?"

  
  


"Of course, my friend. Let's finish this!"

  
  


Spider-Man and the Green Goblin circled each other for a moment. Then they walked toward each other and stared each other down. It was at that moment that Spider-Man realized that the Green Goblin was a whole foot taller than him. He stared into the Goblin's red eyes and saw the Goblin staring back into his white eyes. They stood for a full minute before Spider-Man made the first move. The Goblin blocked a jab to his jaw and caught Spider-Man's arm. He turned around, lifted, pulled, and threw Spider-Man several feet away. Spider-Man shifted his momentum in midair and flipped. He landed on his feet and immediately ran toward the Goblin. He threw another punch and found the Goblin blocking this one too. He raised his arm just in time to block a punch from the Goblin. Spider-Man and the Goblin locked their fingers together and engaged in a test of strength. Spider-Man pushed with all of his strength, but the Goblin was obviously stronger. The Goblin pushed back and forced Spider-Man to his knees. He looked down at Spider-Man and grinned. "The battle is mine!" Spider-Man was forced even further down so that he was almost bent over backwards. He was flexible, but if he were pushed back any further, his back would be broken. He slipped his legs under him so that he was sitting in an upright position. Then he pulled his legs to his chest and shot both feet into the Goblin's groin. The Goblin let go of Spider-Man's hands and backed up. Spider-Man stood up and hit the Goblin with an uppercut. As he stumbled back, the Goblin extended his foot and kicked Spider-Man in the jaw. Both men backed up and stared at each other.

  
  


"Having fun, Spider-Man?" asked the Goblin.

  
  


"Shut up and fight," said Spider-Man.

Spider-Man moved his body to the side just fast enough to dodge the Goblin's laser shots. He formed a web shield to block a laser that flew toward his head. The lasers kept coming, though. Spider-Man dodged the lasers and fired more web shots. The Goblin dodged the webs and continued to fire the lasers. They ran around the room and continued their shootout. When they finished, the walls were littered with webs and burn marks. Of course, the fight was only beginning.

  
  


The Goblin reached into his pouch and drew a Pumpkin Grenade. He lit it and threw it at Spider-Man. Spider-Man caught the grenade with a web and tossed it back at the Goblin. The Goblin watched it fly through the air, then he blasted it with a laser. The laser caused it to explode and cause flames to spread in the air. The Goblin ran below the flames and tackled Spider-Man. They grappled for awhile and occasionally rammed their knees into each other's ribs. Spider-Man broke the grapple and jumped to a nearby wall. He fired a web at the Goblin and pulled him into the wall. The Goblin hit the wall face first, but he regained his bearings and caught Spider-Man on the way down. He grabbed Spider-Man by the arms, flipped him, and slammed him back first into the floor. Spider-Man lay stunned on the floor. He looked up at a black boot that was coming toward his face. He caught the boot, twisted it, and caused the Goblin to spin and fall to the floor. Spider-Man turned onto his side and kicked the Goblin in his face as he tried to sit up. The Goblin sat up, and as Spider-Man threw another kick, he caught his foot, pulled him, and elbowed him in the face. Spider-Man fell back and used his hands to spring to the wall. He climbed the wall to the ceiling and fired webbing down on the Goblin. He emptied two whole web cartridges onto the Goblin before stopping.

  
  


"Do you really think this can stop me?" asked the Goblin.

  
  


"No, but it'll hold you still while I kill you," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"What? You don't really mean that!"

  
  


Spider-Man dropped from the ceiling and landed on top of the Goblin. He stood over him, raised a clenched, trembling fist, and punched him with all of his strength. He raised his other hand and repeated his punch. His punches kept coming. Every punch became harder and harder. "This is what you wanted? You wanted power? Here's your power! This is what you'll get for your little quest for power! You took the one person who meant the most to me! You took away the only person who ever meant this much to me! You killed the woman I love! For that you must die!" Spider-Man repeated his punches until his arms and fists became sore. He stopped for a second with his fists still in the air. Even though he hadn't counted, he had actually punched the Goblin eighty-seven times. He wanted to kill the Goblin. Just beat the life out of him and make everything easier. But he knew that he couldn't do it. He could never take a life. 

  
  


"You...know...that I'm right...You are...a killer..." said the Goblin.

  
  


"No, you're wrong. I'm not like you, Goblin. You're broken. Even a minimum security prison can gather the pieces," said Spider-Man.

  
  


Spider-Man stepped away from the Goblin and turned away. He started to walk to the exit, but he stopped when his Spider-Sense started to tingle. He turned back and saw the Goblin straining. The Goblin tensed all of his muscles and tore the webbing from his body. He stood up and glared at Spider-Man. He screamed an inhuman scream, as if he had gone totally insane. He ran toward Spider-Man with his fists raised in the air. Spider-Man ducked and dodged a swipe to his head, then he smashed the back of his fist into the Goblin's face. The shot sent the Goblin flying all the way down the hall into the far wall. He smashed head first into the wall and hit the ground hard. The Green Goblin looked up and saw Spider-Man. Spider-Man looked down upon him. It wasn't a look of hatred anymore. It was a look of pity. Spider-Man was looking at a broken man. "It's over, Goblin. Just accept that."

  
  


"I...I have been defeated..." said the Goblin.

  
  


"You need help, Osborne. Help yourself, then help your son," said Spider-Man.

  
  


"I...I need to get everything into perspective, don't I?"

  
  


"Yes, you do. May you live your life in peace."

  
  


Spider-Man turned to the door. Slowly he walked to the door. Then he heard the Goblin speak. "No," the Goblin said. "No! I will never allow this! I will never be defeated!" The Goblin grabbed the remote from his pouch and pressed a button on it. Spider-Man heard a sound, and soon he saw the Wing Bomber flying down the hall. It flew toward him at a tremendous speed. He only had a second to react. Spider-Man turned back to the Goblin. He jumped straight into the air and backflipped over the Wing Bomber. He landed on his hands, bent one knee, extended the other, and landed in that position. He looked up and saw a sickening sight.

  
  


The Green Goblin was dead. The Wing Bomber had done more than he bargained for. Spider-Man saw the Goblin hanging on the wall, with the pointed tip of the Wing Bomber in his chest. He had been impaled by his own glider. Spider-Man wondered whether that was a final attempt to kill him or a suicide attempt. But it didn't matter now. The Green Goblin was dead. The fight was over. Spider-Man was the winner.

  
  


Peter went straight home that evening. The trip was long and quiet, yet oddly soothing. He entered the house and walked into the living room. He saw his Aunt May sitting on the couch. She turned around and looked at him, then she rose from the couch and ran to him. She hugged him tight and looked at him. Peter lowered his head and fell into his aunt's arms. Then, for the first time since Gwen died, he allowed himself to cry.

  
  


Peter slept very late and didn't wake up until noon the next day. He rose from his bed and went into the living room. There, sitting on the coffee table, was the day's mail. He searched through the mail. There was an envelope from the Daily Bugle. There was a check with his name in it. His first paycheck. Not that it mattered at the time. Then he saw another envelope which had been opened. He looked at it. It was the month's mortgage, which was overdue. He looked at the bill, then at his paycheck, and he put his check into the envelope with the mortgage.

The night was cool and soothing. It was very pleasant and easy to relax in. It was the perfect atmosphere for a person to think. Spider-Man liked the Empire State Building. It was a nice place to go to when he needed to think. There were plenty of things to think about, too. George Stacy called Peter earlier in the day and told him the date of Gwen's funeral. He planned to go, but he was still trying to get over Gwen's death.

  
  


Then there was Harry. His best friend was dependent on LSD. He already knew that there was nothing that he could do as Spider-Man to help him. In fact, even Peter couldn't reach him. He was very worried about his friend. Harry was usually more responsible than that. Now, he was slowly killing himself. Peter had no idea what to do to help him. He would also have to help Harry cope with his father's death. How could he explain that his father was the Green Goblin? How could he explain that Harry's father died fighting him? Yet another problem to take care of.

  
  


Then there was the whole problem with balancing two lives. Peter had to live the life of a high school senior and the life of a superhero. His grades were starting to slip up because of the time he spent as Spider-Man. Being a crimefighter took out a lot of valuable study time. It wasn't easy keeping his identity secret, either. It didn't seem too hard to have two lives when he first started, but it was actually harder than it seemed. Yet another problem to take care of...

  
  


Then there was the police. It's pretty hard to try to fight crime when the police themselves want to kill you. Most of the cops were crooked and would step over there own mothers just to make a quick buck. Only men like Captain Stacy could be considered good cops. Most of them were against Spider-Man and would kill him without thinking twice. Yet another problem to worry about...

  
  


Then there were the citizens themselves. Most of the people in New York thought that Spider-Man was just another costumed maniac like the Green Goblin. The Daily Bugle didn't help, either. In fact, Jamison made a statement saying that Spider-Man was working with the Jade Syndicate during the whole hostage situation. The citizens of New York basically believed anything Jamison said, so everyone was automatically against Spider-Man. Yet another problem to take care of...

  
  


Then there was Aunt May. Even she thought that Spider-Man was a criminal. Peter loved her to death, but it was hard living as Spider-Man and being bad-mouthed by her. He appreciated her, though. She struggled for him. That's why he gave her his paycheck so she could pay the mortgage. She meant that much to him.

  
  


And then, there was Uncle Ben. Uncle Ben was the whole reason that he decided to fight crime. Uncle Ben's death changed Peter's life forever. He was sad, of course, but he also learned the most valuable lesson of his life: With great power comes great responsibility. So, even with all of his problems, would Peter actually decide to quit being Spider-Man? "No way," he said aloud. There were problems to be handled, but he could take them all. Uncle Ben raised him to be strong and handle his problems. Spider-Man swung away from the Empire State Building with a big smile under his mask. It was another day, after all. "Just another day in the life of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man!"

  
  


  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


  
  



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